The Gathering
by Invader Sam
Summary: Six months after the Egyptian Tounament... UPDATED! After a long hiatus, Chapter 26 is up! Seto Kaiba receives the prototype of his greatest technological acheivment - The Duel Disk Three!
1. Chapter 1 The Will of Seto Kaiba

An Opening From the Authors: Welcome back all you readers of the Egyptian Tournament! Welcome to the kick-off for what should be an exciting sequel!! This story will NOT be a tournament, as we feel we have had our fill of scripting duels, and also we cannot think of any way to spice up what is beginning to become a cliché. This story will have duels in it - not too worry - just not in a tournament structure. 

Also, our focus will be more on character relationships and the growth of each character personally. Since there is no tournament, there will be no need for an of you to submit fan-characters. Sorry, but the story is jam-packed with OCs of our own making, and they all serve a purpose to the story, as you will soon see. 

Quickly, we do not own Yu-Gi-Oh or any of the original characters or concepts. We do own our OCs, and this particular story idea, but that's all. ^_^

So without further ado, we give you...

* * *

Yu-Gi-Oh: The Gathering

By Sam & Shaun

Chapter 1

"The Will of Seto Kaiba"

_Seto Kaiba was at the pinnacle of glory. His almighty Blue-Eyed Ultimate Dragon was sitting behind him and little Yugi Moto was cowering at his feet. "This is it Yugi," Seto said cruelly, "You've long outlasted your reign as the King of Games…it's time for me to take back what should have always been mine!" He waved a hand in the air, "Go, Ultimate Dragon! Destroy him!!"_

_ The dragon took flight, soaring past its master with a mighty rush of wind, making the boy-billionaire's black cape swirl around him. But as the great creature neared the younger boy, a large gold Egyptian Eye appeared in front of him, reflecting the Blue-Eyes' attack and keeping Yugi safe from harm._

_ "What the hell??" Kaiba cried._

_ Behind the eye, little Yugi stood up. But he was no longer the frightened boy from before, but the stronger, more mature personality he always became when he was in trouble. He was supposed to be some kind of Pharaoh with magic powers, and in spite of himself, Kaiba had begun to believe it. Now he was staring at the Pharaoh through the blinding glow of the eye._

_ "You…" Kaiba seethed, "I suppose it's better you're here…I can seek my revenge against you as well."_

_ The ancient king said nothing, but simply snapped his fingers. A jet of light shot out of the Eye and Kaiba dodged it just in time to get by with only a slash on his right arm. 'What is this magic??' he thought frantically. He heard a roar of pain and turned to see his Blue-Eyes being disintegrated by the Eye. Knowing he couldn't stand up to this force on his own, Kaiba did the only thing he could do – he turned and fled._

_ The blackness seemed to stretch to the ends of the universe, surrounding Seto with voices of his taunting opponents. Without warning, a figure appeared in front of Kaiba, blocking his path. It was a white-haired, skinny boy that Kaiba recognized almost instantly._

_ "Bakura…" he said, "Get out of my way." He raised a hand to strike the boy, but instantly, the Eye appeared again, and the Bakura became his other form, wild-eyed and grinning almost dementedly. Kaiba staggered backwards, scrambling to turn around and escape as the blinding light rushed past him again, this time striking his left arm._

_ No sooner had he turned around than he found himself only feet from the other Yugi, closing in on him. He whipped around again, and saw Bakura's other self walking slowly towards him, still smiling insanely, "No," Kaiba whispered, feeling panic clutch his throat in anticipation, "This can't be… I'm the ultimate duelist… the best…"_

_ Suddenly, both of his attackers turned their heads to the right, away from him. Their eyes grew wide and both raised their Items in that direction. Seto began to turn his head feeling as if he were in slow-motion, to see what they were looking at. The air was cut twice around him, in roars of wind that knocked him to the ground with their force. _

_ Kaiba looked up, craning his neck upward from his place on the solid blackness that threatened to swallow him up. He could see Bakura and Yugi lying next to him in two spreading pools of blood, which sent a shiver up his spine. But the most horrible sight of all was that of the figure standing in front of him. The man was walking towards him now, his boots clanking softly against the ground. _

_ "You…no…you're dead…" Kaiba stammered as the Millennium Shield and Sword became visible as Lord Jetsu approached him. "How is this possible??"_

_ Jetsu's icy eyes glinted behind his visor and he raised the Sword, and before Kaiba could even think about reacting, brought it down upon him. Seto felt cold fill his whole body and then his every cell exploded with pain. As he fell backwards through the floor beside the other fallen ones, he saw the dim image of Vitani at Jetsu's right side, watching him without expression. _

_ "No…" Kaiba said softly, as he fell further and further into the blackness, "I trusted you…" Jetsu raised the Shield, blocking Vitani from view, and then light filled everything._

* * *

Seto Kaiba awoke with a start, breathing hard, his shirt clinging to his body with sweat. He blinked a few times, wondering why he was being blinded by light. As his bedroom slowly came into focus, he saw Vitani standing at one of the windows, pulling back the curtains, her back towards him. For a split second he couldn't help but admire her curves, but he snapped back to reality just as quickly. "What are you doing?" he muttered.

She turned, her features somewhat silhouetted by the morning sun pouring in through the window. "Oh you're up," she said, "Good. I was about to wake you, but you looked so peaceful, I felt bad about it."

"Really…" Kaiba grunted. Judging by the content of this all-too-familiar dream, he doubted very much that he could have possibly looked 'peaceful' during his slumber. Trying to change the subject, the young man stretched and addressed his personal assistant, "Is Mokuba up yet?"

"Yeah," she nodded, moving on to his rotating wardrobe and pressing the 'randomizer' button. The shirts, pants and jackets began zooming past her as the machine whirred to life. "He's eating breakfast now, and I told him to leave some for you." Not getting any kind of response, she cleared her throat awkwardly and left the room saying, "Well…I'd better go check on him…"

Once out in the hallway, Vitani paused a few yards away from the now-closed door of her employer's room. Kaiba had been dreaming again…as he had been sporadically ever since they'd left Egypt over six months ago. Every time it happened she wanted to do something in order to help him…but had been afraid to do so. Sometimes he called out her name in a betrayed sort of way, and it worried her. What could possibly be tormenting him so? She was almost scared to find out…she didn't want it to be her. 

She heard Mokuba switch on the TV downstairs and, glad to have something to preoccupy her, hurried downstairs to make sure he'd cleaned up the kitchen before abandoning it.

Meanwhile, Kaiba had stripped down to his boxer shorts, and was selecting his suit for the day. While searching through his many similar wardrobes, he came across the coal black cloak that he had worn during the tournament in Egypt. He always wore it during his dream. The dream varied every now and again, sometimes replacing Bakura with Pegasus or Marik. Not that it mattered. The outcome was always the same, no matter what. Jetsu Maeda… 

Seto could remember vividly his only encounter with the man. That defeat had perhaps been the most humiliating he had ever suffered. He, Seto Kaiba, champion of Duel Monsters, had lost to a handicapped opponent. True, having Wheeler as a partner in a duel was almost like being handicapped, but he had pulled off a good move or two. 

Still, that duel had been unique for but one reason: it had showed Kaiba what he had always desired. The man had possessed the power to do what all of KaibaCorp's technology and wealth couldn't: bring the Duel Monster cards to a life of their own. Maeda had been able to accomplish this through the use of his Millennium Magic. That Shield was the most wonderful and horrible object Kaiba had ever laid eyes on.

He glanced down at his right hand, where the tiniest trace of a scar still remains. He had received this mark by touching his Blue-Eyes White Dragon during that duel. He had been able to make contact with his most prized and powerful card for one brief moment, then felt the pain of defeat as Exodia blasted his soul from his body. Yugi… How that little twerp was ever able to defeat a man such as that was beyond anything Kaiba had been able to understand. 

Seto wheeled around and punched his fist through the nearby mirror, angry past reason. Yugi, Marik, Pegasus, Jetsu… every duel he had ever lost had been handed to him by a holder of one of these ancient Egyptian artifacts; the Millennium Items. Glaring down at his bleeding fist, Kaiba began to slowly pick out the tiny shards of glass, ignoring the sharp spikes of pain he got each time. It was his destiny to hold one of these Items as well, but that chance had been taken away from him by Ishizu Ishtar, after Yugi had defeated Marik. 

Yugi… somehow or other it always came back to Yugi. Skill no longer mattered, really. Seto had proved his skill long ago. It was the magic that mattered now. The Ishtars had it, Yugi had it, Bakura had it, Pegasus had had it, and Jetsu had it. Everyone but him!

Suddenly, Kaiba stopped, staring up into the broken mirror. Worst of all, Vitani had it. His own assistant had what he desired…

Seconds later, as he was standing in his bathroom, bandaging his hand, he heard his little brother's voice through his bedroom door. "Seto! Seto are you in there? We heard a crash!"

"I'm fine!" he lied, "The mirror fell off the wall."

He made sure to put the mirror on the ground before leaving the room, several minutes later, fully dressed. Mokuba was still waiting for him, and jumped up from his spot on the floor as soon as the door opened. "What happened to you're hand?" he asked worriedly, noting the bandages.

"Tried to catch the mirror," Seto replied shortly, "Shouldn't you be leaving for school?"

"The bus doesn't come for another half-hour," Mokuba told him. Despite all of Kaiba's efforts, Mokuba refused to ride in a personal limo to school. 

"Well then go watch TV or something."

"Alright…you sure you're okay?" Mokuba asked as he headed down the hallway towards the stairs.

"I'm fine – now go," Kaiba assured him. 

* * *

"So a mirror fell, huh?" Vitani asked as Kaiba came into the kitchen a few minutes later. Kaiba just grunted in affirmation and helped himself to the steaming mug of coffee she had left on the counter for him. "Mokuba was really scared," she continued, "You shouldn't make us worry like that."

Kaiba said nothing, but opened up his laptop and began to download his work files. After a moment (and several more sips of coffee) he spoke up again, "Have the idiots from ENT Tech sent over the hologram system designs for the DD3?" Seto set his cup down hard, looking up at his assistant.

"No, not yet," she replied instantly, "They sent a fax saying it would take a few days longer than scheduled. They said something about asking for the impossible…"

"Bastards," Kaiba muttered, "Tell them that if the DD3 prototype isn't ready by the agreed date that ENT Tech will no longer be a company. Not when I'm done with it." He slammed his laptop closed and put it in his briefcase that had been waiting for him on the counter, fumbling with the locks distractedly. What was so impossible about wanting technology to bring Duel Monsters to full, living form? He had seen it done by a power 5000 years out of date! 

"You can tell them yourself," Vitani said, "I figured you'd like a few words with them, so I fit a brief meeting into your schedule today. And I couldn't go in your place even if I wanted to – you've got me going to Mokuba's parent-teacher conference this afternoon."

"Fine," he said shortly, picking up his briefcase and beginning to walk away, "Mokuba!" Seto called out over his shoulder, "I'm heading off to work. I'll see you tonight!"

Mokuba Kaiba came running out into the kitchen, but by the time he arrived there, Kaiba had already slammed the door behind him, obviously still in a terrible mood. The little boy swung himself up onto his favorite stool, looking over at Vitani, "What's wrong with Seto?"

The Egyptian woman shrugged, and said quietly, "He wants the impossible…"

"Nothing's impossible for my big brother!" Mokuba replied earnestly, grinning ear to ear.

Vitani couldn't help but smile. "For his own sake, I hope you're right. Otherwise we're heading for trouble." She glanced up at the clock, "Shouldn't you be heading to school?"

Mokuba sighed, "Stupid school." He grumbled to himself as he hopped down and went to search for his backpack.

Vitani frowned as she watched him wander off, wondering why he hated going to school so much. _'Well…I'll probably find out this afternoon…' _she thought.

* * *

Fifteen minutes later, the Kaiba mansion was deserted, but all was not still within the walls. In the living room, Mokuba had left the TV on and the morning news was on and the anchor was droning on to no audience.

"And in local news, the Domino Museum, which has been empty for the past year, has been leased to a new owner. Miss Seline Chrysogonus has been taking her impressive collection of artifacts on tour all around the world and has chosen to make Domino City her latest stop. The grand opening is this morning at ten, and as you can see from this skycam picture, there's already a crowd gathering outside waiting to get in. Several local schools have sent students to the opening for field trips…"


	2. Chapter 2 Museum Mysteries A New Beginn...

A Brief Note from the Authors: To everyone who's reviewed - thank you! To everyone who hasn't read our first story - um...you really need to read it first. And to all - we will continue to call Yami Bakura "Barak" because having to type "Yami Bakura" all the time is tedious. And Barak is a cool name. Anyway, on with the story!

* * *

Chapter 2

"Museum Mysteries- A New Beginning"

"Would ya look at this crowd?" Joey Wheeler complained, stuffing his hands into the pockets of his uniform jacket, "Why couldn't the stupid teachers wait a couple weeks before takin' us here?"

"I'm with Joey on this one," Tristan Taylor nodded, "It's gonna be a mad-house in there – like they really expect us to learn anything…"

"Oh it's not so bad," Tea Gardner said, shifting her purse from one shoulder to the other, "it's better than being in school, right?"

At that moment, Joey was bumped several times in a row by small children in a hurry, "Sure it is, Tea. Sure it is…"

Yugi just smiled. Everything was back to as normal as it could get between his friends. He turned to Bakura, who was reading something on a small piece of paper, "Watcha got there, Bakura?"

The white-haired teen blushed deeply and quickly stuck the paper in his jacket, "Oh, um…nothing…" he muttered.

"That wasn't from Athena, was it?" Yugi asked slyly.

Bakura immediately became immensely fascinated with the ground around his shoes, mumbling, "Maybe…"

"Better keep that away from Mr. Sayanato, or he'll read it to the class when we get back," Yugi told his friend, waving a finger warningly.

"Who's gonna read what to the class??" Joey asked, overhearing and pushing his way between the two boys.

Bakura sputtered incoherently, but was relieved of having to explain as the crowd suddenly became quiet and the sound of someone tapping on a microphone floated down from the steps of the museum. A woman in her mid twenties was standing at a glass podium, waiting patiently for the young people to settle down. Her green-blue hair fell lightly around her shoulders, highlighting the shine of the gold-bead earrings she wore, and her purple eyes glinted in the morning sun. 

"I'd like to thank you all for coming," she said, smiling demurely out at them, "In all my travels I've never had such a fine turn out for my grand opening as this. Behind these doors lies my life's work…"

It took Bakura a moment to realize that the air seemed much cooler for some reason, flowing all around and through him... Wait, through him? The boy looked down at himself and saw his translucent, spirit form. Startled, he looked over and saw the distinct features of Barak now present in his body. Spazzing slightly, he tapped his yami on the shoulder, _'Ahem.'_

"What?" Barak said curtly.

_'What do you think you're doing?'_

"Look," Barak said, refusing to answer directly, but instead holding up the Millennium Ring, on which one of its prongs was glowing and pointing up at the woman.

Before Bakura could reply, there was a loud cheer and he looked up to find that the museum owner had cut the ribbon blocking off the entrance doors. The crowd began to pour forward, past the smiling face of Ms. Chrysogonus and into the Egyptian museum. 

As the group of friends started to move along with the current of the crowd, Yugi realized that one member was missing. "Hey, Bakura!" he called back, "Why –" he stopped short when he saw his friend standing _outside _his body, while the darker counterpart had control, "Barak??" Yugi said, confused, "What're you doing here?" Despite the fact that they were no longer enemies, Barak's appearance was never a very welcome one.

He glared down at Yugi and began to walk forward with the crowd, ignoring the question. Bakura hung back a bit, _'The Millennium Ring was acting up,' _the kinder spirit told Yugi.

"Well I can see that…" Yugi said wryly, eyes following Barak as he caught up with the others.

"No," Bakura shook his head, "I mean it was pointing, just now, up at that Chrysogonus woman."

"Oh…" Yugi nodded, "So, does she have a Millennium Item? I know that there are more of the new ones that we haven't found yet."

"I suppose I'm going to find out for sure," Bakura said, "Whether I want to or not."

Yugi smiled sympathetically, "Let me know what you find."

"But don't get into unnecessary trouble," Yami warned, appearing beside Barak, "We don't need the boys getting thrown out."

Barak stopped in his tracks, his fists clenched, "I'm not looking for trouble, my liege. I know I cannot survive without my host."

Yami frowned, "I'm glad you've accepted that at least," he said, "But never the less, perhaps it would be wiser to do our searching in a way we cannot be detected."

"We…?" Barak repeated, scowling.

"That's right," Yami nodded, "I'm coming with you, and I'm telling you to leave the body to Bakura. It will be easier to explore in our spirit forms."

"Are you afraid, Pharaoh?"

"_No_…" Yami said firmly, "I just don't think it's wise to go half-cocked into something we don't yet understand. Perhaps there's no danger at all, and perhaps there is. _I_,for one, don't wish to chance landing my host in the hospital again anytime soon."

"Yes… you do seem to have a habit of that, don't you? Why don't you leave this to those that can handle themselves?" Barak growled, taking another step away from the ancient ruler.

"Because I don't trust you completely yet," Yami told him bluntly, "And anything involving the Millennium Items involves me as well as you."

The crazy-haired thief sighed, "Fine. We'll do it your way… this time." Barak closed his eyes and in an instant he had traded places with his host. 

"Hey!" Tristan called, "Mr. Sayanato says to get your butts in gear and stay with the class!"

Yugi and Bakura both took one last look at their counterparts and then began their journey through the maze of people towards their friends. 

Joey raised a quizzical eyebrow at his two friends, "What took ya, Yug?"

"Oh…nothing," Yugi lied, "Yami and Barak were just arguing, but don't worry – we broke it up."

"You should be more careful not to lose track of the class," Tea said, "If you got lost, we might never find you in this mob!"

"I'm not a little kid anymore you know," Yugi said defensively, "I'll be fifteen soon."

But they didn't seem to hear him, as the tour guide began to speak and their class started to move again. From just inside the door, Yami and Barak watched as the two hosts began to move onward again. Barak turned and began to walk off, heading right for the hallway he knew lead to the restricted section.

"Just what are you expecting to find, exactly?" Yami asked as he followed a few paces behind, something he did subconsciously so as not to make Barak insecure about his position as leader of the little expedition.

"A few answers, perhaps," the older sibling shot back quickly, holding up the now-translucent Ring. All five prongs were violently pointing towards the door that read 'Restricted Section', "You remember this place, I assume?"

"Yes," Yami nodded. It was this area that had held Ishizu's collection of artifacts most-directly connected with his past. He gestured at the door, "After you."

Barak turned around and looked back over Yami's shoulder, "This place has certainly changed from my last visit." It was true: Ishizu's many artifacts had been carefully arranged and ordered, this assortment was quite the opposite. 

As if eager to show off everything, there was an enormous amount of material crammed into every place possible. Ancient items that were made of purest gold sat side-by-side with blood-stained old papyrus scrolls, labeled only as being related by being found in the same tomb and approximately from the same time period, "Why does a collector hide their most valuable possessions?" He walked right through the door, heading in the direction that the Ring was directing him. 

"I'm not sure…" Yami said, beginning to head down the stairs after his half-brother, "Perhaps they don't realize the value of what they have."

When he arrived in the main chamber below the stairway, Barak's eyes narrowed as he looked out upon the center display. He folded his arms and began to walk around the room, viewing stone tablets that hung on the walls. As Yami came down the stairs after him, he nodded his head towards the back wall of the room. "How do you suppose _that_ got here?" he asked.

Following the thief's gesture with his eyes, Yami's jaw dropped. In a tall glass case, on a silver mount, still with a small crack in one side, and shining dully, was the Millennium Shield.

Dumbfounded, Yami strode past Barak, coming to a stop inches in front of the glass case. He reached one hand through the glass, letting his fingers drifted through the surface of the Item. "It's dead…" he said after a moment, "The magic has been disbanded…or sealed away so deeply that even I could never find means to access it…"

"I doubt someone with your skills could ever access a magic so powerful anyway." Barak told his temporary-partner, more than a touch of coldness in his voice.

Yami frowned, "And I suppose _you _could?"

"Temper, little brother. Anger isn't becoming on you. I am merely stating a fact, after all." Barak smirked, looking back at his sibling through the corner of his eye.

Yami didn't answer, mainly because he was too proud to admit that his half-brother had a point. He'd mastered the power of the God Cards, but according to the book of scriptures Shadi had given him, he had once been much more powerful than he was currently. Something was still locked away in his past that he had not been able to tap into, and (though he would never admit it) it was starting to get to him. 

Wanting to revert the conversation back along the lines of their main purpose, he began searching for a label in the case along with the Shield. "Strange…" he muttered, spotting a very inadequate one, which merely gave an estimation of the time it was crafted, and the time it was brought into the collection "Ms. Chrysogonus claims to have owned this for five years."

"It's a ruse. That particular Item was confiscated by the Egyptian authorities." As Barak was about to continue, both of them looked up as they heard the door at the top of the stairs open, letting in much more light than was necessary.

First only soft footsteps could be heard descending the stairs, then the Ms. Chrysogonus came into view, accompanied a tall, thin man with shoulder-length black hair and a suit of the same color. "These grand openings are always such bedlam," she was saying, "I want to thank you Chalie, for helping me get away – you always seem to know exactly when I need a moment to collect myself."

The man nodded, "It's my job to know these things, ma'am."

Seline ran a hand through her hair absent-mindedly, gazing around at the hidden collection. "Just look at them…" she said, gesturing around, "Aren't they gorgeous?"

"Yes, ma'am…" Chalie agreed, but he seemed distracted, and his eyes were traveling slowly around the room.

Seline crossed over to where the Shield was, passing right through Yami and Barak. "Such a shame this one's broken…" she said dolefully, "It would've made such a fine centerpiece…"

"Indeed…" Chalie said, then his voice became chilly, "I do not believe we should linger here much longer. You will be missed…and I sense that we are not alone as you may think."

Yami and Barak exchanged looks as Seline walked through them again. "Very well," she said, heading back up the stairs, "Has Basil reported any security breeches yet?"

"Not yet, ma'am," Chalie said, trailing after her, "everything has been running relatively smoothly this morning."

"Excellent…" Seline's voice faded away as the pair disappeared to the upper level once again.

Barak spoke first, "I believe it is time we returned to our hosts." There was no need for him to share the conclusion he had drawn with his half-brother: It was that bodyguard that was calling the shots. It must have been him who was holding the Millennium Item! 

Yami gave the Shield one last look and then hurried after the Spirit of the Ring.

* * *

"There you are Yami!" Yugi whispered as the Pharaoh and the Thief met the students out on the steps of the Museum around 2:00 that afternoon, "Where've you been?"

_'Looking around…' _Yami shrugged, _'You can't imagine how frustrating it is having people constantly walking through you…needless to say we decided to wait for you out here.'_

"That's cool," Yugi said, then added, "But I meant – did you find what was activating the ring?"

_'No,'_ he sighed. Considering how much he and Yugi went through just months ago, the Pharaoh did not continue after that.

Yugi stared over at his counterpart, confused. There had to be more than that! But before he could probe into Yami's exploration adventure again Joey came over and sat down next to him, right on top of Yami, "Hey Yug, who're ya talkin' to?"

"Huh? Oh – Yami," Yugi said quickly, "And you're kind of, um, sitting on him…"

"Wha??" Joey leapt up and then bowed quickly to thin air, "Sorry about that!"

"It's alright…" Yugi said, watching as Yami stood up and walked around to the other side of him, shaking his head as if he was too used to this sort of thing, "You can sit back down now – he moved."

"He does know I don't mean to do that, right?" Joey asked as he warily sat back down again. 

"Yeah, he knows," Yugi said, "Sometimes I think he just gets frustrated because not many people can see him."

"Wish there was some way to change that…" Joey sighed, "Anyway…what were ya talkin' about?"  
Yugi glanced over at Yami, who was staring out at the crowd of people moving past them. He figured that since Yami had said it had been a false alarm, it would be alright to fill Joey in. "Well, he and Barak had thought they might find another new Millennium in the museum, but they didn't have any luck."

"Ahh well," Joey sighed, "That's kind of a mixed blessing, if ya ask me."

"What do you mean?" Yugi asked.

"One the one hand," Joey began, "It'd be fun to have to fight off another item-wielding psycho who wants to take over the world. One the _other _hand, the _last _item-wielding psycho nearly killed us all…" Yugi's face fell at his friend's cynical words, and Joey noticed immediately. "Hey, sorry man," he said hurriedly, "I'm just kiddin', jeez. Seriously, though, I'm kinda getting' used to things bein' normal again, you know?"

"Yeah…I know," Yugi nodded.

"Sure it's boring... but it allows more time for personal lives, if ya know what I mean," 

Yugi sighed as his friend elbowed him once or twice. Things must still be going well between him and Mai, "No, Joey, I do not." He stated firmly.

"What're you talkin' about?" Tristan asked, coming up behind Joey and leaning on top of his head, "You don't have a personal life either. I doubt you've seen Mai since that plane ride!"

"That is not true!" Joey growled, shoving the other boy off of him, "I'm positive I've had more action than you – Mr. I-still-haven't-told-Tea-that-I-like-her!"

"Huh?" said Yugi.

Joey and Tristan stopped in mid-scuffle, both gaping at Yugi, wide-eyed, not having a clue what to say next. They were saved of the trouble of wracking their typically-Neanderthal brains, when Tea and Bakura joined the group. 

"Are you two fighting _again_??" Tea scolded.

Both 18-year-olds instantly released each other, putting their hands behind their heads, and laughing nervously. 

"Yup," Yugi told her, grinning, "I think it had something to do with you, didn't it guys?"

"No!" Tristan said a little too quickly.

"Of course not!" Joey insisted, "Don't know what you're talkin' about, Yug!"

Tea raised an eyebrow, quizzically.

Both boys, frantic to find something to shift the conversation to, spotted Bakura, standing a little ways off, reading a small piece of paper, and rushed over to him.

"What'cha got there??" Joey asked, leaning over Bakura's shoulder.

The British teen blushed and shoved the scrap back into his jacket pocket, "Nothing," he said.

"You've been obsessing over that thing ever since we left the airport," Tristan began, leaning in close to Bakura, "Let's see what it says!" In a flash, he had reached inside the teen's pocket and snatched out the bit of paper.

"Hey!" Bakura cried, reached for it, but his reflexes were a bit too slow, "Give it back!" he pleaded.

"In a minute…" Tristan told him, nose nearly touching the paper. A second later he burst out laughing, "Oh man! Joey you gotta read this!"

"This isn't funny Tristan!" Tea told him impatiently, trying to grab it from him, but he had already handed it to Joey, who began to read the note.

"C'mon Joey, give it back!" Yugi asked his best friend, trying not to notice how red Bakura was getting.

"Aww, man…you don't get good stuff like this everyday," Joey chuckled, "Here Tristan, keep it for posterity, or somethin'."

Tristan caught the paper and began playing keep-away with it with Tea. He felt a tap on his shoulder and had barely turned around when Barak's fist met his face and he went sprawling across the now-empty marble steps. The small scrap of paper flew out of his hand and fluttered down slowly. Barak snatched it and stalked off down the stairs.

"Aw, _jeez_…" Tristan moaned, clasping a hand over his face as he picked himself up, "I think he broke my nose!"

"Serves you right, you big jerk!" Tea snapped, "That was a horrible thing to do – you really embarrassed him! I thought you two had grown up by now."

Joey looked down at his feet, as Tristan tried to stem the blood flow from his nose with his sleeve. "I'll go apologize…" Joey muttered.

"I would wait a little while," Yugi said, "Until Barak cools off, at least."

"Yeah…probably…" Joey agreed, then shot a guilty at Tea, "Dunno what got into us…"

"I do," Tea said, "Whatever you were fighting about was too embarrassing to tell me, so you picked the easiest way to divert the attention from yourselves – by picking on someone else. Why don't you just grow up?" She turned on her heel and stomped off in the same direction that Barak had gone.

Once she had gone, Joey glared at Tristan. "This is all your fault, you know."

"My fault??" Tristan cried.

"Yeah," Joey said, "If you would just 'fess up already, we wouldn't hafta keep coverin' for ya!"

Tristan flushed angrily, then, unable to think of anything to say, turned away and left as well, still holding his sleeve up to his face.

"Well, that went well…" Yugi sighed, looking around at the near empty area.

"Boy…we really blew it today, didn't we, Yug?" Joey asked, sitting back down on the steps.

"Yeah…kinda…" Yugi said, joining him, "If only Tristan wasn't so stubborn…Tea wants him to come forward, you know."

"What?" Joey asked, "Whadda ya mean? She knows??"

"Oh yeah," Yugi said, "For a while now. I told her maybe she should be the one who confronts him, but she said that wouldn't be right. She wants him to be mature enough to actually tell her that he likes her before she'll ever consider going out with him."

Joey's eyes widened. "How do you know so much, Yug?"

"Tsuki tells me," Yugi shrugged.

"Huh??"

"Well, ever since Egypt, Tsuki and I have been e-mailing back and forth. And she told that Tea had been in touch with her too. I guess she needed another girl to talk to or something. So anyway, Tsuki keeps me updated on what Tea won't come right out and tell us," Yugi said with a little grin.

"You're my hero, Yug," Joey said, gazing at the youth with admiration.

"Come on," Yugi said, standing back up, "Let's go see if Bakura's alright."

"Sure." 

And the two boys headed down the steps of the museum towards the street


	3. Chapter 3 The Woes of Seto Kaiba

Chapter 3

"The Woes of Seto Kaiba"

**_ SLAM!!!!_**

Mokuba looked up from the homework he was doing on the coffee table, the entire house shaking for a second for some reason, "Seto must be home…" the boy mumbled quietly, adjusting his position on his purple pillow where he sat, nervously tapping his pencil upon his paper.

Vitani pushed her reading glasses up the bridge of her nose as she looked up from the laptop she had sitting in front of her on the couch. "Must be," she nodded, "You wanna go up to your room before he gets in here?" she offered, snapping the computer shut, "He seems to be in one of his _moods_…"

"Ok," he replied quickly, collecting up his things. On his way out of the living room, he looked back and grinned slightly, "Thanks for volunteering to deal with Seto. I really liked having you as his personal assistant."

"Wait – what?" Vitani asked, but the boy had already gone, and she could hear the elder Kaiba's footsteps on the stairs coming up from the foyer. Feeling a little uneasy, she crossed to the doorway of the living room, watching as he came into view, stomping up the stairs. "Rough day…?" she asked weakly as he reached the top of the flight.

In response, Kaiba set his briefcase down and pulled out his cell phone. He stared at it a moment, then spun around and flung it at the wall, smashing the bit of machinery into hundreds of pieces. The man nearly exploded, cursing as loudly and quickly as possible.

Vitani cringed slightly, "I'll take that as a yes…" she muttered, waiting patiently for him to run out of breath and end his rant. "Let me guess – you don't want to talk about it."

Kabia glared up at her, faint dark circles visible around his eyes, "How…? How was he able to do it?"

"How was who able to do what?" Vitani asked, honestly.

"Goddamn it, Vitani!" Kaiba shouted, sweeping his arm around and knocking his briefcase off of the counter, "You know perfectly well what I mean! You worked for him for two years: how did he do it? How could some psychotic maniac do what every bit of knowledge and technology I have access to can't?"

Vitani's jaw set. "Technology can't create life, Kaiba," she said quietly, "No matter how much money you have. Only magic can do what Jetsu did – extremely powerful dark magic that I could never control."

Kaiba felt his temper flare up again, threatening to bubble up to the surface once more. Magic… once again, what he needed was magic. Life wasn't fair. He bent down and retrieved his briefcase, then turned and left the room, "Sorry…" he mumbled on his way out. After all, it wasn't her fault that his life sucked.

Vitani watched him leave, her cold expression not softening until he was out of site. She shook her head and started up a different set of stairs to her own room on the third floor. If things kept going like this, pretty soon Kaiba wasn't going to be satisfied with just breaking his phone. If he didn't let off steam soon, he was liable to lose control and lash out at someone instead. Something had to be done.

* * *

Seto Kaiba lay upon his bed, staring into the nothingness of his pillow, lost in his own thoughts that seemed to drift in and around him along with the breeze from his open window. He was only vaguely aware that his eyes were leaking at a slow but steady rate and he couldn't seem to summon the strength to fight back. 

After what could have been any length of time, the door opened and he could hear footsteps coming towards him. Seconds after the sound ceased, he felt the touch of cold steel on his neck and for a split second wished that it would pierce him clean through and rid him of his miserable existence.

"Get up," a familiar feminine voice said and he forced himself to turn his bloodshot eyes up towards the figure standing at the side of his bed.

It was Vitani and the metal touching him was the hilt of a silver blade she was holding out to him. Her own weapon of choice, the Millennium Sword was in her other hand, its gold blade glinting in the moonlight from his open window.

"What do you want?" he asked, his voice gravelly. She couldn't be serious, "It's not you I want to kill…"

"I don't intend to get killed," she said bluntly, shifting slightly so that the plain sword was in a better position for him to take hold of, "Get up."

He grasped the handle of the sword, wondering what she really wanted him to do with it. Seto stood up, trying to get the feel for the blade.

"I think a sparring session is in order," she said, turning her back on him and heading out onto his balcony. He watched her, wondering what she was planning. Silently, her silhouetted figure gripped the railing of the trellis with one hand and flipped herself over the edge.

Darting out to where she had stood an instant before, Kaiba was able to watch her descent end with a cat-like landing on the grass of the courtyard two stories below. She brought herself up to her full height and stuck the tip of her blade in the ground, leaning against it and staring up at him, challenging him to follow her.

Kaiba snorted softly and threw his sword down to the ground. It landed at Vitani's feet, upright and wobbling slightly next to her own weapon. He then climbed over the railing, so the young man was standing with his back turned on his assistant, feet barely keeping him balanced on the balcony. He gripped two of the bars below the railing firmly and let his feet leave the floor. 

The railings were cold and difficult to grasp tightly, which nearly caused Seto to let go and fall the next story down. After a second or two, he was able to calmly let go and drop the rest of the distance, the shock being absorbed mostly by his extra-expensive boots. Immediately he straightened up and walked over to his personal aide, pulling his sword out of the ground and raising it in front of him.

"Not bad," Vitani said, smirking, uprooting her own weapon and taking a few paces backwards, gripping the hilt with both hands, holding it out at a slight angle, "Ready?" These unorthodox nighttime swordplay lessons had been born out of one of Kaiba's previous bad moods, in which she'd stopped him from taking out his anger on his equipment and placed a sword in his hands instead. He was a fast learner, but not yet able to understand the subtle art that went into the fighting style she was attempting to teach him.

Without so much as a blink the man charged forward, thrusting his sword forward, aiming at her midriff. There had been enough talk already; now was the time to fight!

Vitani rotated her blade, meeting his mere seconds before it could touch her. She then shifted her strength and forced him back, keeping the blades in contact, scraping against each other the whole time, just to force him to stay on the offensive.

Kaiba could feel his blood burning. She did this much too often: toy with him. He pulled his blade backwards away from hers, nearly causing her to over balance. Seto took advantage of this by side-stepping once to the right and slicing through the air in a long arch sweep of his weapon.

Vitani used the near-falling action she was in to her advantage, going into a quick roll and escaping his thrust. She was back on her feet quickly and now behind him, swinging at his back.

He jumped away, but not fast enough. First blood had been drawn, again by her. Seto could feel the chilly, stinging wind blow at his minor wound, causing more pain than a cut normally would. Kaiba, now enraged, turned around and lunged forward, sword tip being forced toward the hand that was clinging to her golden blade.

The skin on the back of her right hand tore and she instinctively let go of the blade, clutching it more tightly with her left hand, drawing her right hand in close to her stomach. Fighting left-handed was awkward, but not impossible. Still, it made her angry to think that she had been careless enough to let herself be put at a disadvantage so easily. And then, as the tiniest spark can set a whole forest ablaze, she was furious.

As Kaiba rounded for another assault, she grabbed hold of her hilt with both hands, ignoring the bleeding, fire burning in her eyes and her blade glowing red. The aura climbed up her arms and suddenly she was on the attack, coming at her employer with a force that she had not been intending to. With one swipe, she lobbed the tip off of his blade. With a second, she sliced it down so that it was barely any metal left above the hilt.

Kaiba was too stunned to avoid the roundhouse high-kick that followed. Her boot connected to his jaw and toppled the duelist, knocking him to the ground. Seto looked up, shocked. There was a deep, red glow all around Vitani's arms and in her eyes. But worst of all, Kaiba could see the ominous shadow of a black knight above her, bearing down on him in the same stance, sword pointed at his neck. _She lied… she did learn his magic…_

And, as quickly as it had come, the glow faded and Vitani blinked as if waking up from a trance. As soon as her eyes met his, she dropped the sword, letting it fall to the grass softly. "Omigod!" she murmured quickly, looking horrified, and then clutching her right hand, as if not realizing until then that it was hurting. _'What did I do…?'_

Kaiba picked himself up slowly, the hurt look of betrayal etched on all his features. He dropped the hilt of his broken sword and slowly walked away, not looking back at his assistant.

Vitani sunk to her knees in the cool grass, watching him leave. She'd made everything worse, and she wasn't even sure how it had happened. One minute she was herself, and the next…

Her gaze fell on the Sword, and a shiver ran up her spine. She couldn't remember how she had won the match, only that she had gotten angry and it…had taken her over… She reached out and touched the blade, which was slightly stained from the wound she had dealt to Kaiba. A sharp jolt ran through her and she recoiled from it, suddenly afraid. Not knowing quite what to do, she left it in the yard, and walked slowly back into the house to tend to her injured hand.

* * *

Kaiba did not bother to change out of his blood-stained clothes or even tend to his wound. Vitani had been holding out on him… she had known all along how to control the magic he so desperately craved. She kept it from him…

He picked up the bottle of sleeping pills his doctor had prescribed for him from his nightstand and took four. It was a bit much, but anything that could end this miserable day would be fine with him. He was so sick of this day…

With that, Seto Kaiba lied down on his bed and promptly fell into another restless sleep, the pills doing their job efficiently. But nothing could stop the dreams… nothing…

* * *

Vitani entered his room a short while later, her right hand bandaged, with the antiseptic and medicinal tape in her left. Moving deftly, she managed to slip off both Kaiba's torn suit jacket and shirt . She dressed his wound with a little difficulty and then, wondering why he hadn't woken up through any of it, noticed the open bottle of pills on the nightstand. Shaking her head sadly, she knelt down on the floor beside the bed, taking one of his hands between both of hers and pressing her forehead against his fingers, silently apologizing to him for being unable to deliver to him what he wanted. Then she too drifted quickly to sleep…

* * *

_When Vitani opened her eyes again, everything was black around her. She glanced around, confused and then felt cold air surround her. As she shivered, a harsh voice barked at her, "Show no signs of weakness, Vitani!! The enemy will take advantage of that. You must be heartless…as I have always taught you."_

_ As she watched, the blackness around her shifted and the black knight emerged in front of her. "Master…" she breathed, speaking the word before realizing it, and clapping a hand over her mouth afterwards. "No…you're dead…" she said, "I'm…I'm free from you…"_

_ The cold eyes behind the mask glinted, and the perfect white teeth were revealed in a cruel smile. "You'll never be free from me…" Just then, running footsteps echoed through the nothingness and Jetsu turned abruptly, drawing the Sword from its sheath. _

_ Vitani came around behind Maeda just in time to see Kaiba screech to a halt in front of him, gaping at him. Before he could even get a word out, Jetsu raised his sword…_

_ "NO!!!" Vitani cried as the blade came down and blood splattered everywhere. She tried to move forward, to get to Kaiba somehow – she had to help him! – but Jetsu thrust out and arm and caught her in the chest. Kaiba's eyes met hers for an instant before they clouded over and he fell into the blackness. "No…" she whispered, tears running down her face, as he vanished, "No…don't leave me…"_

_ "What is this idiocy? Crying over a worthless being like Seto Kaiba? Pathetic..." Jetsu was inches behind Vitani, the Sword now poking her in the back, "Get up."_

_ Vitani's head jerked up, shock written all over her face. Those words had been hers…or had they…? Overwhelmed, she let her head hang again, not having the energy to raise herself up._

_ "Nothing to say? Fine," Jetsu spat, "You were always too soft anyway." Pain erupted like wild fire in her back and she knew it was all over. _

_ She was falling now too, down, down, down…where Seto had fallen. Soon she could see his body…drew level with it. Feeling lightheaded, she grabbed at him, clutching his blood-drenched shirt and drawing him close. As she felt fire opening up below them, she buried her face in her chest, murmuring, "I'm sorry…"_


	4. Chapter 4 Mistakes

A Note from the Authors: Thank you all again for your continued support! For those of you who've been making predictions about future chapters...you'll just have to wait and see. ^_^ And as far as our accuracy goes in keeping up with the actual Anime storyline, we only know what we've seen and what we've chanced to read on-line, so please cut us a break when we don't stay completely true to the actual story - we don't know it all. And it can't ever really fit into a storyline that's already so far ahead of us over in Japan, so think of it for what it is - our ideas for what we think would be interesting to have happen to these characters. Think of it as an alternate universe if you have to - sort of like the DragonBall Z movies. ^_^ Anyway, without further ado...let's get to the chapter!!

* * *

Chapter 4

"Mistakes"

_ 10:00… time to close up._ Solomon Moto stretched and got up slowly from his stool behind the counter. Business had just never been quite the same since Battle City ended. There was a rush to buy cards just before and after the tournament, but once again times were slow. It wasn't him or his store that were hurting, but his wallet. Sometimes he really wondered whether or not there would be anything for him to leave Yugi when he passed away…

Just as he was about to close the door (he had opened it about an hour ago. The night air was refreshing to an old man these days), a high-heeled boot stepped in the way and a finely-manicured hand caught hold of the door. "Sorry," the young woman said, giving him a guilty smile, "Do you have a moment?"

"Um, well… it is closing time," The old man told her as he opened the door a bit more, but did not move out of the way, "Is there anything specific that you're looking for? Perhaps I could tell you if I have it in stock or not."

"Yes, actually," she said, "My name is Seline Chrysogonus – perhaps you've heard of me – and I have been informed that you may have an artifact in your possession that would fit in very well with my collection. Naturally, Basil and I had to come and see if those sources were correct." 

She gestured to a tall, muscular man at her side, whom Solomon had not noticed until now, though he actually wondered how he had not seen him before. The man had black hair cropped short, with a small ponytail, a broad nose and small, narrowed eyes, and the business suit he was dressed in seemed very unfitting to his form. 

The woman, who was slight, seemed almost diminutive in comparison. She was dressed in a suit as well, with a long dark overcoat that nearly touched the floor. Her turquoise hair was tied back in a knot in a traditional Japanese style, though Solomon knew from the news that she was foreign. 

"I don't seem to recall owning anything Egyptian," Solomon told her gruffly. The last thing he needed was someone else coming after Yugi's Puzzle. Didn't anyone have the sense or decency to just leave the poor boy alone? "I'm sorry I couldn't be more help to you, but-"

"Grandpa?" Yugi's voice cut him off from the stairway, "What's going on? I thought you were closing up."

Seline's eyes widened and she slipped past Solomon and quickly approached the boy, arms outstretched. "I knew I spotted it on the security cameras this morning!" she exclaimed, "This bears the same symbol as a few of my ancient Egyptian carvings!"

Yugi immediately felt a jolt and he realized that Yami was coming out. It was just as well: he always knew what to do when people tried get at his Puzzle. The Pharaoh reached out and hand and grabbed Seline's closest hand by the wrist, "Can I help you?" he asked, his stronger, deeper voice the clear sign of a commanding presence.

Seline did a slight double-take, but recovered just a quickly. "Yes you can help me," she said, straightening up, a smile on her face, "You can tell me how much you want for that artifact. Money is no option – name your price."

Basil stiffened at the doorway, wanting to act, but knowing Seline would disapprove – it angered him to see her addressed so disrespectfully.

Grandpa backed away nervously from the brute in front of him and went to stand near his grandson. Yami raised a quizzical eyebrow at the museum owner, "I'm sorry, but my Puzzle is not for sale."

"Not for sale…?" Seline echoed indignantly, with the air of a child not used to not getting her way, "Perhaps you shouldn't really be the judge of this. Mr. Moto surely realizes what a handsome price a piece like that could bring in, don't you Mr. Moto?" she turned towards Solomon, "I promise you I'll make it worth your while."

"I gave Yugi that Puzzle." Solomon stated firmly, folding his arms and nodding at his grandson, "He has every right to decide whether or not to sell it."

Seline frowned, disappointed. "Well, if that's the way you feel…" she pulled a small piece of thick paper out of the pocket of her overcoat, and handed it to Solomon, "Here's my card. Let me know if you change your mind." With a flourish, she turned and swept out of the room, followed closely by Basil.

As the game shop door closed and the pair disappeared into the darkness, Grandpa turned to his grandson, eyeing him closely.

Yami swallowed nervously, "…What…?"

"You're not really my grandson…are you?" 

Instantly, Yami receded back into the Puzzle, letting Yugi regain control of the body. "What're you talking about, Grandpa?" the younger boy asked innocently.

"Wait just a minute…" Solomon said, "I could've sworn you looked…different…a second ago."

Yugi forced himself to laugh as genuinely as he could. "I think it's getting late, Grandpa," he said, "Maybe after a good night's sleep you'll be feeling better…" He took his guardian by the arm and began to lead him up the stairs to their apartment.

"I feel fine right now…!" Grandpa protested.

* * *

School the next day was anything but normal. As Bakura made his way through the school yard towards the building, people pointed and whispered. Or fake-whispered anyway, because they made it clear that they wanted every word heard.

"Did ya hear? Bakura decked Taylor yesterday!"

"No way! That little wuss?"

"Yeah – I couldn't believe it until I saw the bandage on Taylor's face."

"Whoa…weird…"

"Tell me about it…"

The British teen was careful not to make eye contact with any of the whisperers, but he had to endure them all the way until he got to homeroom, where he sunk into his desk, thankful to be the first one in.

"I suppose I should be thanking you," he told the air bitterly.

Barak materialized, sitting on the desk in front of his host's. "You should," he said shortly, "I got that stupid bit of parchment back – though I don't understand why it's so precious to you."

Bakura folded his arms on top of his desk and rested his chin on them, "Yes – but you've also made me the talk of the school. You can't tell me you haven't heard them."

"I choose not to listen," Barak told his host nonchalantly, "And the boy got what he deserved. I owed him one or two already…"

Bakura sighed and did not reply. It wouldn't do for the other students now entering the room to hear him talking to nothing. More students began arriving soon afterwards and the classroom soon was filled again with the chatter of adolescence, the looks, and the whispers.

Tristan entered the room a minute later and all noise ceased. Bakura glanced up slightly and was a little surprised at what he saw. There was a white bandage across Tristan's nose and both of his eyes had dark rings around them. He was followed closely by Joey, who began starring at the floor as soon as he saw Bakura, and Yugi, who was looking guiltily between the three of them.

Yugi sat down next to Bakura, trying to smile, "Hey."

"Hello," Bakura nodded at him, "Is…erm, is Tristan alright?"

"He'll live," Yugi shrugged, "I think his pride was hurt more than his face…"

Bakura nodded, but neither of them could think of anything else to say, so they sat in silence until class began.

* * *

"Hey, Taylor! What happened to your face??" came a cry from across the cafeteria, "Get hit by a bus??"

"No," came another voice, "A wuss!"

The crowd erupted with great guffaws of laughter, and Tristan buried his face in his arms, wanting to dissolve into the table and never be seen again. Above him, her heard Tea's voice, "Yugi, tell Tristan that this is just what he deserves."

There was a sigh and then Yugi's voice, "Tristan, Tea says you deserve this…"

"I heard her the first time, Yugi. Tell Tea to talk to me, not through me," came the teen's muffled reply.

"Tea," Yugi began listlessly, "Tristan says…"

"Oh, I heard him," Tea cut him off, "Tell him that I won't talk to him again until he decides to grow up."

"Why do I have to be the messenger boy??" Yugi complained, "What about Joey?"

"Hey, leave me out of this," Joey muttered, hiding himself behind his sub-sandwich.

Yugi sighed, "Tristan, Tea says…"

"Oh please stop that, Yugi," Bakura interjected from his seat beside Joey across the table, "It's getting rather annoying." Then he leaned over and added, "Tristan – I'm sorry Barak broke your nose, but not speaking with Tea isn't going to solve anything."

"_She_ started it," Tristan muttered.

Bakura and Yugi exchanged glances, but didn't have time to do anything because the bell rang again, signaling the end of the lunch break, and the group was forced to merge with the sea of students rising from their seats and massing towards the cafeteria exits.

As the British teen was nearing his locker (having already been separated from the others because of the torrent of students shuffling through the halls), he felt a hand reach out and grab him. Holding him by the arm, whoever-it-was dragged him out a door and into an open courtyard, slamming him up against the side of the building. When his eyes adjusted to the light, he found himself staring at Joey, who was looking surlier than he had in a long while. Bakura gulped.

"Listen…" Joey began, now holding the white-haired boy by the collar of his uniform, "About Tristan…"

Bakura shut his eyes, waiting for the worst, but only felt himself being lowered to the ground. "Sorry," Joey muttered. Bakura opened his eyes again; Joey was staring at the ground. "For both of us…though I'm kinda hopin' Tristan'll get around to this too eventually. What we did was stupid…sorry…"

"Oh…" Bakura said, smiling slightly, "Thank you, Joey. Knowing you, that must've been hard to do. Thanks."

Joey looked back up and grinned, "Don't mention it. We cool now?"

"Sure," Bakura nodded, "Now we'd better get back to class."

* * *

The business day had been awkward to say the least. Kaiba could no longer look her in the eye, as if he was afraid of something about her now. Vitani knew that after their last duel, she couldn't really blame him. She still hadn't been able to figure out what exactly had happened, but there was about a period of 30 seconds that she had no recollection of.

She sighed as the automatic doors leading out of Kaiba Corp opened for her, letting her out into parking lot. The night sky was bright and starry, with a half-moon visible, so it wasn't impossible to see where she'd parked her 22-payments-until-owned automobile. 

As she was unlocking her car Vitani felt a hand touch her shoulder. Instantly she turned, fist flying towards the spot where she anticipated the strangers face to be. And she would've been on target, had the man not shifted slightly and dodged it. With her arm still mere inched from his face, the young man said softly, "I mean you no harm, Vitani…you have nothing to fear from me."

She drew her hand back, staring at the man, "How…how do you know my name…?"  
"You were once the servant of Jetsu Maeda, were you not?" the man asked, shaking his shaggy brown hair out of his eyes.

"That name means nothing to me anymore," she spat angrily.

"Then my request should be a welcome one," he said, "My…employer wishes to own the Millennium Item that you still possess. Since it is a relic of your past – which you clearly want to forget – parting with it should be no issue."

Vitani made to speak, but the instant refusal got caught in her throat, and she found herself wondering if it would really be such a bad thing to be rid of the her last connection to her old master…

As she was about to inquire as to why the stranger wanted the Item, a dull pain throbbed in her head and she stopped. The pain faded and she tried to ask again, but the pain returned, this time more forcefully than before. She put a hand to her forehead and let out a cry. Recoiling quickly, she revealed to the stranger what she could not see, but what she knew was there: the glowing red symbol of the Egyptian Eye. The tips of her fingers were burned, and the pounding in her head was getting louder by the second. 

She swayed on the spot, leaning against the car for support, feeling nausea overwhelming her. Her master had often punished her in this way, right from the beginning, making her fear of him outweigh her doubts about his methods. Just as she felt her head would split in two, a familiar voice cut through the cold night air.

"Vitani!" Kaiba came striding up to her and the pain ceased. Still feeling slightly dizzy, she straightened up. "What're you still doing here?" he demanded.

"He –" Vitani started, gesturing behind her, but the stranger had vanished, "There was…a man there…" she panted, looking quickly around the near-empty lot.

Kaiba raised an eyebrow. "Right…" he said slowly, "Look – maybe I should drive you home tonight…" He turned and headed down the lot toward his own vehicle. Not long after returning from Egypt, Kaiba had decided that he no longer needed a chauffer, and had purchased a Porsche for himself to drive. 

"But – what about my car?" she asked, following after him.

"You can get tomorrow morning," he said shortly, not looking back at her.

The ride home was an awkward one, with neither of them saying anything until Kaiba had pulled into the huge garage underneath the mansion. As he pulled the key out of the ignition, he noticed Vitani cradling her un-bandaged hand. "What happened to your hand?" he asked gruffly.

"You did – last night," she replied.

"No…the other one," he said, annoyed.

"Nothing." She quickly got out of the car and headed for the elevator.

Kaiba got out of the car and caught up with his assistant, "Fine. If not your hand, what's that on your head?"

"What?" she put her hand up to her forehead once again and felt the faint tracing of a burn there as well. Fear was plastered across her face as Kaiba stared at her. Unable to think of any way to defend herself, she turned and fled the area, avoiding the waiting elevator and running towards the stairs.

Kaiba flushed, angry at being avoided by his own aide. _What right does she have to ignore me? Especially after what she did with that Sword last night…_ Another thought struck him quickly: He'd never even gotten the chance to ask her how her meeting with Mokuba's teacher went yesterday. Perhaps he would look into that; how long had it been since he'd last sat down with his brother? His own kin should be the last one to need an appointment into Seto Kaiba's life…


	5. Chapter 5 One Fine Morning

Chapter 5

"One fine morning…"

The next day was Saturday, and Joey was out and about early that morning. Down-town Domino City had been all decked out for the coming holiday season since early November, so the lights and tinsel no longer caught his eye. He was also no longer fascinated by the fact that he could see his breath in front of him – a small wonder that had amused him greatly when he was younger. He could remember back to elementary school, when he and Tristan used to swear they could make shapes out of the mini-clouds and try to impress the girls in their class with their tricks. It never really worked, but it had been fun. 

Joey sighed inwardly. Things were sure different from when they'd been kids. Not always worse, but always different. He rounded a corner and his nostalgic thoughts faded away. In front of him was a large studio, built of white stone and silver metal, and a finely-detailed logo along-side the front doors. He pulled a visitor's pass out of his jacket pocket and slid it at the key-pad. The glass doors slid open and he stepped inside.

At the front desk, the female receptionist waved to him, "She's up on level four, Mr. Wheeler."

"Thanks," Joey nodded to the woman, and then boarded the elevator. He pulled the scarf off from around his neck and shoved it in his pocket, unzipping his jacket with his other hand. The elevator door slid slowly open and he stepped out into level four – where it was snowing.

Or at least fake-snowing. Joey stepped out of the elevator into a large open room with the back half built up to look like a perfect snowy-hill complete with pine-trees and blue-sky backdrop. Men in black t-shirts and pants were hurrying around everywhere, adjusting cameras and operating the snow-blower. In the center of the set-up, a group of young women were huddled together, all dressed in the latest winter outdoor fashions. And in the middle of the group, was the one girl Joey had come to see.

"Mai!" he called out.

The whole group turned, and the instant they spotted him, they started giggling. Mai Valentine gave a few of them playful punches and then jogged over to Joey, who caught her in his arms. "Hey, Joey," she said, planting a quick kiss on his lips, "Glad you decided to come."

"You kiddin'?" Joey asked her, "No way I'd pass up a chance to be wit' you."

Mai grinned, "Always such a charmer."

"Hey, Mai! Get back over here," a voice called out. A man in his mid-thirties was waving her back over towards the group of girls. "We need you now, angel."

"Coming James," she told him, then whispered to Joey, "I'm glad you came," before going back over to the set. 

Joey smiled. There was never anything for him to do at Mai's photo shoots, but it gave him excuse to just stand around and watch her, which made everything worth it. One of the camera men offered him a folding chair and he sat down, hanging his jacket on the back, and settling in for a nice show.

For over an hour, Mai and the other girls posed for the cameras. Sometimes by themselves, sometimes in pairs or trios. At one point, a group of little girls, no more than five or six, were brought in. Each woman was paired with a girl and photographed in adorable mother/daughteresque poses. 

Joey couldn't help but notice how well Mai got on with the girl she'd been paired with. He watched as the two of them were given a puppy for one shot and both of their faces lit up in the same way. _'She'd make a great mom…' _he thought, and then blushed, wondering if it might be his kids she'd be a great mother to. 

The puppy caused some problems, however, as the little girl couldn't keep hold of it. It squeezed out of her arms and bounded off of the set. Joey laughed as the camera men tried to catch it, then as it came past him, reached out a hand and grabbed it by the collar. "You guys lose somethin'?" he asked, nonchalantly, holding it up.

The little girl came running over. "Sorry," she said shyly, as he gave her back the animal, "He's wriggly…"

Mai laughed as she came up behind the girl, "Yeah, they tend to be that way. Thanks, Joey. There's no telling how many cameras he might've broken."

"Anything for a lady," he said, patting the child's blonde head.

"Hold it!" James cried, striding over to them, "Hold it right there! This is perfect!" 

"Eh?" Joey said, "What's perfect?"

"What're you talking about, James?" Mai asked.

"I told you about this, Mai," the man said, "Earlier this morning our father-model called out – your beau here can fill in. If he's up for it." 

"What??" Joey cried, "Model?? Me??" 

"Sure," Mai said, beaming at him, "You'll be fine – I promise."

The blonde-haired teen looked from her, to the director, to the little girl, and shrugged. "Why not?" A small cheer was heard from the other cameramen. "Just show me what to do."

Within seconds, a group of women (also all dressed in black) herded him off to wardrobe and make-up. There, he was measured for sizes, then stuck in a barber's chair while the women fussed with his hair, and put power on his face. When they reached for more make-up, he had to interject. "Hold up, ladies. Is that really necessary?"

One of them nodded, "Otherwise the glare from the spot-lights will make you look dead," she explained. 

Joey decided that wearing make-up was better than looking like a zombie in something that might end up somewhere in public, so he opted to let the women do their job. Finally, he was suited up in an outfit that wasn't quite his taste, but he had to admit, it made him look damn good. Mai came in as he was standing in front of a huge mirror and whistled. "Not bad…not bad at all," she said approvingly. 

"Thanks," he said, blushing, "Now what?"

"I'll show you. Come on," she took him by the hand and led him back out onto the set. The little girl, who was finally introduced to him as Lucy, was waiting for them, the only one of the girls still left. "The others got finished and left with their parents already," Mai explained.

"Sorry," Joey said, "Is it 'cuz of me she has to stay?"

"I don't think she minds," Mai said, smiling as the little girl played with the puppy.

"Okay people, let's go!" James called, coming onto the set, "Lucy's only got twenty more minutes that she can work, so let's get this done."

The first shot was just of Joey and Lucy, where he held the little girl on his shoulders. Then he swung her upside-down by her legs and she burst into a fit of giggles that James absolutely loved. Mai was brought in next, and it was her turn to hold the child up to put a star on one of the fake pines. The final shot was one of the three of them together, with Lucy being held up by both of them together, just smiling at the camera.

"Excellent!" James cried after the last flash had dimmed, "That's a wrap, folks. Let's clean up and get this stuff over to developing."

As Lucy ran off to meet her parents, Mai took Joey by the hand. "You're really good with kids," she said.

"Yeah?" he asked, putting one hand behind his head, "Guess it's 'cuz I'm still a kid too, eh?"

"I wouldn't say that," Mai assured him, "Let's go get changed. I'll treat you to breakfast for being a good sport."

"I'll go for that," Joey said eagerly, and fifteen minutes later they left the studio, arm in arm.

* * *

"Put it away."

"What?" Bakura looked up from where he was lying on his bed, holding the note from Athena once again.

"I said 'put it away'," Barak repeated, turning around to glare at his counterpart. He had stopped shuffling through Bakura's dueling deck and spoke with rising irritation in his voice, "Every time I turn my back you have that thing out. It's a waste of time!"

"Why do you _ say_ that?" Bakura asked, looking hurt.

"Because you haven't spoken to that Greek in months. And wasn't it she that suggested you forfeit the Millennium Ring over to Jetsu?" Barak questioned him, ignoring Bakura's expression, "How do you think the Pharaoh would have felt if you had? I doubt Yugi would have much to say to you in the afterlife."

"Even if I had turned it over to him – which I never seriously considered – you would've just come back anyway," Bakura said bitterly.

"You're defending her when she hasn't even had the time or consideration to send you more than an electronic note every month? Bold, for you anyway. But then again 'lust is blind', isn't it?" Barak asked the younger boy, a wicked smirk upturning a corner of his mouth.

Bakura frowned, "Fine," he said, sitting up, "If you want me to forget her and be miserable and alone my whole life – fine." He tossed the note in the waste basket on his way out muttering, "It's always about what _you _want, isn't it?"

Barak watched the teen storm out, surprised. It wasn't like him to get angry so easily. Perhaps he had really gone too far this time. The spirit got up and walked slowly over to the trash can, where he reached in and pulled out the crumpled note. He read over, refreshing himself with the text. Then he left the room, intent on finding his host.

Bakura was outside the apartment, sitting in the dimly lit stairwell. He hadn't been quite sure where to go, and wandering around in the cold wasn't the most appealing of ideas. But he also didn't want to go back inside just yet to face Barak, to try to make him understand. He reached inside his pocket for the note on instinct, and sighed as he realized he had thrown it away. Maybe it was for the better. They'd probably never see each other in person again anyway. He did miss her, though.

"You forgot something," came a voice, startling Bakura, "Here." Barak handed the paper to his counterpart, not meeting his eye.

"Why are you…?" Bakura started, staring up at the spirit.

"Drop it," Barak told him flatly, turning away and beginning back up the stairs.

"No really," Bakura persisted, scrambling to his feet, "Just a minute ago you told me to give it up and get over it – now you're giving it back to me. Why?"

"I realized the meaning of the word 'host'. A parasite cannot live without the organism to which it attaches itself. A host does not take orders from its parasite; it just manages to tolerate it somehow…" Barak turned his head, seeing if Bakura got his drift. This was probably about as close to an apology as he would ever come.

Bakura smiled, "Thank you…I think," he said. He glanced down at the worn-out bit pf paper, "It's funny...it crossed my mind that you might've understood what I was feeling…but I suppose that sort of thing was what you'd consider trivial, huh?"

Barak smiled almost sadly, "It was painfully obvious where your thoughts were, Bakura. I suppose I might've even been a bit jealous of you, really…"

The teen did a slight double take. "Of me…?" he asked, blushing, "Really…? I thought you said I was pathetic."

"Well, that speaks worlds about me now doesn't it?"

Bakura laughed slightly, and shrugged. "I don't know…" he said, heading back up the stairs. As he reached the door, he turned back to look at his counterpart, "You know…I've been meaning to ask you…did you ever have anyone…like this…?" He held up the note.

Barak stiffened, "No," he said composedly, walking through Bakura to get inside, "No one…"

Bakura shook his head slightly, trying to rid himself of the strange sensation he always got when his spirit passed through him and then frowned. Barak was probably the most complicated person he'd ever had to deal with, and he wondered if he would ever figure out everything about him. He reopened the door to the apartment and stepped inside as well.

* * *

"Yami, was there anything you wanted me to add for you? You know, for Dedi?" Yugi asked, looking up from Grandpa's computer where his lengthy, nearly-finished e-mail sat waiting for him to send.

The Pharaoh didn't look up from the gaming magazine he'd been reading, but Yugi could sense that behind it, he was blushing. "Um…no…I don't think so, Yugi," he said, "I've…I've never been much good with things like this."

"Oh, okay then. I'll just type something for you, than shall I?" Yugi replied, grinning nastily.

"WHAT?!?!" Yami cried, slamming the magazine on the kitchen table, "You – you wouldn't really, would you??" he stammered anxiously.

"Geez, calm down! I won't say a word if you don't want me to," Yugi told his opposite number exasperatedly.

Yami breathed a sigh of relief, and picked up his magazine again, trying to act like he'd never lost his cool, "Thank you," he murmured.

"Yup," Yugi told him, adding on a P.S. to Tsuki. It went something like this: 'Yami was too shy to type anything here, but I'm sure that he really misses you Dedi. Write soon! Bye!' With that, Moto clicked send, and the message disappeared, "Done!"

"Done with what, Yugi?" Solomon Moto asked, coming into the room. Yami instantly dropped the magazine and walked over to where Yugi was sitting in front of the computer.

"Just an e-mail, Grandpa," Yugi told his guardian evasively.

"E-mailing that girl you met in Egypt again?" Solomon inquired casually, picking up Yami's magazine and sticking it in a basket on the counter with a few others.

"Who, Grandpa?"

"The young lady from the tournament," Grandpa said, "You think I don't have your messages screened?"

The boy turned a shade of scarlet and reluctantly responded to his grandfather's original question, "Yes, I was writing to Tsuki. Happy now?"

"Very," Grandpa nodded, "It'll be nice to finally meet her when she comes to visit."

"That won't be for a while, Grandpa. Right now she's somewhere in New York City on business." Yugi began to trudge up the stairs towards his room, via the stairway out by the store-area.

Half-way up the stairs, Yami spoke. "You miss her, don't you?"

"Yeah," the younger man told him bluntly, "Egypt seems like it was so long ago. Not that I miss _it_ or anything."

"I know the feeling…" Yami nodded, "Now that I know that Dedi's in this realm again, it's hard to be so far away from her…"

Yugi nodded, unable to think of anything to say that wouldn't make the situation worse for both of them.

They reached the bedroom in silence and then, as Yugi flopped down on his bed, Yami chuckled. "I suppose I could've said something like that at the end of your message," he said, "But that might've made her do something crazy like take control of Tsuki and fly them all the way over here."

Yugi jerked his head up, "You don't really think she would, do you?"

Yami laughed, "I wouldn't put it past her. Dedi is – ahh, how do I put it? – an independent spirit. She follows the wind far too often." He sat down on the chair in front of Yugi's desk, still smiling.

"But, um, a message from say… er… someone else saying you missed her wouldn't make her do something like that…would it?" Yugi asked meekly, now beginning to regret his little add-on.

"Well, I suppose…wait –" Yami's expression darkened, "Why do you ask…?"

"Um… heh heh heh, ya know… I just thought it would be reassuring for her to know that you were still thinking about her so I, um…" Yugi trailed off, looking absent-mindedly up at the ceiling.

"Oh no…" Yami muttered, putting his face in his hands, "What did you do?"

"I just told her that I thought you really missed her, but were kinda too shy to say so yourself," Yugi said quietly, pressing his forefingers together in front of his face.

"Well…" Yami sighed, "Here's hoping she's acquired a bit more rational sense than she had in life…"

* * *

"Ooh! A new e-mail from Yugi!" Tsuki cried, clapping her hands together once. She was sitting on a hotel couch with her laptop open in front of her. 

In translucent form, Dedi was leaning over the back of the couch, watching over the girl's shoulder. "What's it say?" she asked eagerly, "Anything from Yami?"

"Hold on," Tsuki said, "Let me read – he writes a lot."

"Fine," Dedi rolled over onto the couch on the other side of Tsuki, sitting Indian-style and watching her counterpart read. She smiled; the girl had turned twelve two months ago, and had hit a growth spurt as well – she was now nearly seven inches taller. She was very different from the timid thing she'd been when they'd arrived in Egypt – so much happier. 

"There's something from Yami at the end," Tsuki said after a moment, pointing at the screen, "Yugi says he was too shy to type anything himself, but he misses you."

"Typical…" Dedi said, grinning, then sighed, "I miss him too…so much…" She trailed off, staring out at the city skyline forlornly before asking, "How much longer until we head back to Japan?"

"Another couple of weeks," Tsuki said sadly, "Barely in time for Christmas…"

"I don't know if I can wait that long!" Dedi said, sprawling out across the couch on her back, "These past six months have been torture!"

"Please try to be patient," Tsuki said, "You know we can't go anywhere without Mama and Papa."

"Who says we can't?" Dedi asked, "Wouldn't you love to see the look on Yugi's face if you showed up on his doorstep two weeks early?"

Tsuki hook her head, smiling. The offer was tempting, but the faces she was more concerned with would be her parents when they realized she had gone missing. Sure, it might take them a few hours to notice, but when they did, they would be plenty upset. She sighed and leaned back against the couch, wondering to herself how much of an eternity two weeks could seem like.

* * *

"Damn you, Maeda!! Damn you!!" Seline shouted, shaking the case that held the Shield. The previous night, Basil had moved it up to the third floor of the museum, which had become their living quarters for the duration of their stay in Japan. At the moment, Basil was bench-pressing weights, Chalie was buried in ancient books, and Seline was throwing a fit in front of the Shield. Aggravated, she kicked at it, smashing the glass with her steel-tipped boot. "I hate you!" she shouted at her own dull reflection in the Shield, "I'm glad you're burning in hell!!"

"Mistress…" Chalie said quietly, lifting his head up to turn his melancholy gaze on her, "Shouting at the Shield will not bring its magic back…nor reveal the counter curse to undo Jetsu Maeda's seal."

"I thought it was your job to figure that out, Chalie," Basil said as he sat up for a moment, wiping sweat off of his brow.

Chalie frowned, "Perhaps if you could _read_, it would be your task as well as mine."

"You wanna say that again, asshole?" Basil asked testily, standing up.

"Oh stop it – both of you!" Seline cut in, "Bickering amongst ourselves will get us nowhere." Brushing her hair out of her face, she slumped down into a cushioned wicker chair, "It also seems that treading the civilized path is leading us to a dead-end as well. Could you explain again what happened when you confronted Vitani, Chalie? I was too tired to catch all of it last night."

"She refused, but not directly. The symbol of the Millennium Eye appeared on her forehead when Vitani attempted to speak to me," he flipped the page in his book, not looking at either of them, "The most curious thing was that the symbol was red, not gold as with most Millennium Item holders. I believe you know who's trademark symbol that was, Mistress Seline."

"I do…" Seline nodded, twirling a few strands of hair around her index finger, "It seems that the Millennium Shield is not the only Item that Maeda left his influence on…" She cocked her head and the morning sun glinted off of her gold earrings. "Now the question is…how much force is going to be needed to get what we want?"


	6. Chapter 6 Troubled Time Harm Not Youthfu...

A Note from the Authors: Sam here... Okay everybody, I feel the need to defend myself for a plot-decision I made back in the Egyptian Tournament that I seemed to get sporadic complaints about: the whole Yugi/Tsuki issue. I've never understood why people think that Yugi & Tea are so 'destined' for each other, I mean, the whole thing seems so unnatural if you ask me. I've never sensed more than friendship between the two of them, and as for the one time when Yami was checking Tea out (when she was playing DDR, remember?), I put that into account when I designed Dedi. I gave Dedi just enough physical resemblance to Tea so that it can be seen as Yami's subconscious recognizing that he used to be attracted to someone who looked similar to Tea - not Tea herself. 

Shaun: To add to this, I can honestly say that the very first time I encountered Yugioh, my first thought upon seeing Yugi and Tea hanging out together was not, 'Boy, those two look like they should get married because the height contrast would be good for their relationship!' It was more like, 'Those two must have been friends forever!' I mean, come on, would you marry your best friend?

Sam: Now taking a moment to look at the Tristan/Tea pairing, I don't see how so many people don't realize the potential. I mean, they've been friends since forever, and they're always together, getting stuck on the sidelines being cheerleaders. It makes more sense that they would turn to each other for support. And don't get me started on who annoyingly wrong Serenity is for Tristan! (I don't think you'll be seeing her in this story, BTW) I'm perfectly fine with her running off with Duke Devlin and being another one of his cheerleaders...lol. 

Anyway, that's really all I have to say about this, so sorry to all you Yugi/Yami/Tea fans, it's just not gonna happen in this story. Sorry to start this chapter off on such a seemingly low note...don't let it spoil anything please! Enjoy the chapter!

* * *

Chapter 6

"Troubled times harm not youthful minds…"

That same morning, on the other side of town, Vitani was sitting Indian-style on the floor in front of her mirror, staring at her reflection dolefully. The Millennium Sword was lying on the carpet beside her, the gold glinting despite the lack of sunlight in the room. Vitani reached up and gently brushed her fingers over the burn on her forehead and shuddered. It was still raw, as were the burns on her fingers, and she could still faintly hear the strange pounding that drove her so far into the repression of her memories. 

She wasn't free…she couldn't be… She should have known that the events of her past would never really be forgotten. Now she could only wonder how far down the mere memory of Jetsu was going to drag her…and if it was possible to escape.

She reached out and picked up the Sword, wishing she knew how to get rid of it permanently. For now, all she could do was put it away for safekeeping, and try not to think about it.

Suddenly, the Sword's gentle golden glow turned a violent shade of blood red, surprising Vitani. The pounding had begun in her head again, growing louder with every second she held the Item. Her hands did not respond to her pleas to drop the Sword as the aura crept up her arms, slowly making their way across her entire body. She let out a cry, the Sword let out a flash of light, shattering all of the windows in her room.

When the light died down again, Vitani was breathing heavily, her eyes now pupil less and deep green. Her mouth curled up in a wicked smile, **_"A human form… thank you, Vitani. I can't believe you actually thought the Pharaoh could destroy me that easily. Ha ha ha ha…"_**

****At that moment, there was a pounding on the door to the room and Mokuba's voice came, muffled, through the wood, "Vitani?? What's going on??"

Jetsu glared at the door, feeling contempt for the younger of the two Kaiba brothers. To have his newfound freedom restricted so quickly… He sighed and closed his eyes. Vitani had planted the seeds of his new existence within her own mind, and there would be another time to attempt complete occupation. With a flash, the mind of Jetsu Maeda regressed within and Vitani's weaker mind was released.

Mokuba pounded on the door again and Vitani glanced around, confused. She was on her feet, still clutching the Sword and her head was stinging again. Numbly, she dropped the sword staggered to the door and unlocked it. Mokuba burst in and hit her head on. Still dizzy, she swayed on the spot and he had to grab her around the middle to steady her. "Are you okay?" he asked initially, then glancing around behind her added, "Whoa…what happened to your room?"

Vitani turned, seeing for the first time the broken shards of glass covering her carpet. "I…I don't know…" she said truthfully, putting her hands on Mokuba's shoulders for support. She wracked her brain, but everything since she'd picked up the sword was missing from her memory.

Mokuba raised an eyebrow at her, a sweat drop sliding quickly down the side of his face, "I think we need to take you to a doctor…"

"What the hell is going on here?" Seto was standing in the doorway, already dressed, arms folded across his chest.

"Someone must've messed up Vitani's room while she was sleeping Seto, look!" Mokuba told his older brother, pointing around the room, "And I think she's getting sick."

Kaiba gave the room a quick glance and then let his gaze settle on Vitani. The burn on her forehead looked worse and she did seem a little out of it. She met his gaze for a split-second and then quickly looked back down at the floor, face flushed. "Fine," he said, "Take her down to the medical ward. See if they can do something about that brand on her head."

"Okay, c'mon Vitani," the boy said kindly, taking her by the hand and starting to pull her out of the room, "Lucky thing Seto hates the local hospital. We have our own medical facilities right here in the house!"

"Great…" she said, nodding and letting herself be pulled along. She knew there would be nothing any doctors could do. This was between her…and the Sword.

Seto scowled as his aide was led away. Something was seriously wrong with her now, or that Sword was really starting to affect her brain. He looked around the trashed room and spotted the Millennium Sword lying on the floor. '_Best to stop the problem at its source,_' Kaiba thought as he picked up the blade and fingered it for a moment. In a flash of movement, he had thrown the golden sword right out one of the broken windows, and watched as it soared away, the extra altitude giving the flight extra distance. Satisfied, Seto Kaiba stepped out of the room, his boots grinding the glass on the floor into tiny grains in the carpeting. Once he had left the room, the Millennium Sword appeared at the foot of Vitani's bed, glowing golden one more…

* * *

"This has been really fun, Joey," Mai said. The two of them were standing on a wooden bridge overlooking a stream in the city park. It wasn't usually where they wound up on their dates, but that particular morning it was where their walking had led them. "Freezing cold," she added, "but fun."

"You cold? Well, maybe I can do somethin' about that, hmm?" Joey suggested, hugging her from behind and kissing her cheek.

Mai smiled, "You spoil me, you know…" she murmured, reaching back and running one gloved hand through his hair.

"Yeah…" he agreed, "Guess I can't help it."

"As much as I'm enjoying this," she said after another moment, "If you keep it up, your lips are gonna freeze to my face. And how would that look for me at work tomorrow?"

"You're workin' again tomorrow??" Joey asked, pulling back from her slightly, looking disappointed.

Mai nodded sadly, "And it's gonna be an all-day shoot on location a few miles out of town. Apparently some companies are too good for indoor sets. I'm sorry, Joey – I know I'd promised to stop working Sundays, but I with the holidays coming up I really need the money." She looked at him pleadingly, "You understand, don't you?"

"Yeah," Joey sighed, leaning back against the bridge-railing, "I guess so…"

"I really am sorry," she said, reaching out and taking hold of his arm, "I promise I'll make it up to you."

"How…?" he asked gloomily.

Mai paused, "Um…well, I don't know if you'd like the sort of favors I used to give out…" she said slowly, blushing.

"Come again?" he asked, turning towards her, curiosity visible on his face.

Mai turned a deeper scarlet. "I really don't think I should be telling you this…"

"Tell me what, Mai?" Joey asked, leaning in at her with a big grin on his face.

"Um…well…" she leaned in close and whispered in his ear.

The teen went very red and his eyes bugged out a bit, before he recovered and promptly responded, "That doesn't sound so bad."

Mai buried her face in her hands, "I knew I shouldn't have told you," she groaned, "I can only imagine how low your opinion of me must've fallen."

"All I know is that the rent's gotta be paid," Joey told her firmly, pushing her hands down and looking right in her big purple eyes.

"You mean you…don't think I'm…" she began, and then stammered, "I mean, that stopped years ago and I –" 

"No, I don't," Joey spoke up, cutting her off, "And I don't think that you ever were. It's all in the past Mai; it's all in the past."

Small tears welled in her eyes and she smiled, "Thank you."

"Forget it," Joey shrugged, putting and arm around her shoulders and steering her down off the bridge and back onto the main path, "Though if you did ever want to…you know, gimme some o' those favors…would I hafta pay??"

"For you…I might give ya a discount."

"A discount… thanks a lot, Mai."

"Only for you, Joey."

* * *

Tristan stared moodily at his own reflection in his bathroom mirror. Two black eyes and a broken nose…usually the signs of a great fight, now only a painful reminder of his recent degradation. Disgusted with himself, he trudged out into his bedroom, and flopped down on the bed, hands behind his head. Some man he was turning out to be. If he hadn't been such a coward, he would have told Tea what he was feeling six months ago. But he'd missed his chance, and now it seemed like he'd never get another one. 

Tired of lying still, he got up again and took to pacing the room. Now Tea wasn't even speaking to him – and all because he'd acted like the punk he used to be and had decided it was easier to pick on another than deal with his own issues. Stopping at the window, he looked out over the afternoon sky. It was time to pay Bakura a visit.

* * *

"It's the brown-haired idiot. Shall I send him away?" Barak asked Bakura over his shoulder, while still looking through the peep-hole at the impatient face of Tristan Taylor.

"Huh?" Bakura looked up from his computer, "You mean Tristan? I suppose you should let him in. We should at least here what he has to say."

Barak sighed and made to pull the door open. From the outside (or anyone that couldn't see spirits) it would seem as if the door was moving on its own.

Tristan looked a little surprised at this, but then seemed to remember that there was another person in the room that he couldn't see, so he shook it off. "Hey…" he said quietly, nodding at Bakura.

"Hello…" Bakura said, "I'm guessing you're here for a reason? Did you have something do say?

"Um…did I…?" Tristan said, awkwardly.

"If not, you can just leave," Bakura told him.

"No, no – I've got somethin' to say…just gimme a minute, okay?" Tristan said quickly, "I'm not used to doin' this."

"Take your time," Bakura said.

Tristan gulped, took a deep breath, then began speaking as fast as he could, "I'm really sorry that I made fun of you and I was a jerk and I deserved to get hit and I hope you'll forgive me for putting you on the spot to avoid my problems!" Promptly after this, he began gasping for breath, ignoring how stupid he most likely looked.

Bakura blinked a few times. "Well…from what I could catch of that, I think it was an apology, so thank you," he said, laughing slightly, "And I'm sorry about your face, as well."

"Yeah, well…" the boy grumbled, "I'm sure at least one person in this room isn't…"

Bakura grinned guiltily, "I'm surprised you'd expect him to be sorry."

"I don't, but tell him that the next time he wants to fight, come from the front. It's cold to hit a guy when he isn't looking," he said gruffly, folding his arms.

The door promptly slammed itself in Tristan's face and the lock clicked shut. "Um…I guess I'll see ya later then…" came his muffled voice through it.

"Okay," Bakura said, shooting Barak a reprimanding look, "Bye."

* * *

Vitani was restless. She'd been lying on her back for hours with a bandage wrapped around her head, pressing strong-scented liniment against her burn. The orange glow from the sunset was pouring into the room, but rather than calm her, it only tormented her, reminding her of the red glow of the Millennium Sword, which she could still sense calling to her from the other side of the mansion. She closed her eyes, trying to clear her mind, but the symbol of the eye was burned in the blackness as strongly as it was in her skin. 

Aggravated, she sat up and glanced around the room. No one else was in the ward and it would be a while before any of the faculty came to check on her. Pulling her knees up to her chest and resting her chin on them, she stared out at the skyline of Domino City – Kaiba's dominion. From the perspective of someone on the outside, the young man had the perfect life: money, brains, looks (even she had to admit he wasn't unattractive), and an empire that spanned the globe. 

And yet he was so unhappy. She tilted her head slightly to one side, frowning. What did he have to be unhappy about anyway? But she knew from experience that money and power meant nothing to someone whose soul was empty. His face seemed to materialize in the window before her – the betrayed, humiliated way he had looked at her after she had felled him during their last match – and she tossed the sheets off of her.

She couldn't stay another minute, not while she continued to put the boys' lives at risk. She had to get control of what was happening to her – and maybe solve a few other problems at the same time. As she snuck out of the ward and off to her room, her mind was buzzing, trying to remember as much of the ancient scriptures as possible. There had been a long passage about a sorcerer who bore a striking resemblance to Kaiba – and he possessed the Millennium Rod.

As far as she knew, the Tomb Keepers still dwelled in Egypt, in the ruins of Giza, and, according to what she had last heard they still held a pair of the Millennium Items. If she could bring the magic to Kaiba…well, that was what he wanted, wasn't it? She hurriedly packed her things, and snuck away unnoticed as the last rays of sunlight faded into darkness.

Or at least, she _thought _she was unnoticed. From his bedroom window, Mokuba watched her scale the wall and disappear from sight.

* * *

"Seto… Seto…" Mokuba called out, still scouring the house for his older brother.

"What is it, Mokuba? I'm busy right now," Kaiba asked from the living room, where he sat with his laptop out, tapping away at the keyboard.

The younger of the two Kaiba brothers jumped slightly at Seto's voice, having just passed the living room without seeing anyone in it. He walked back slowly and leaned against the easy chair Seto was in, watching over his shoulder, "Whatcha doin'?" 

"I'm plotting world domination, Mokuba."

"Really?"

"No," Kaiba told his optimistic little sibling, closing the laptop, "Been there, done that. Now, was there something you wanted to ask me? I'm assuming that's why you were looking for me."

Mokuba shuffled his feet nervously, "Well, I didn't really have to ask you something, more tell you something…"

"What'd you break this time Mokuba?"

"I didn't break anything," the younger boy said defensively, "I just wanted to tell you that you'll have to wake yourself up on Monday morning…"

"What?" Kaiba said, "You broke my alarm clock?"

"Your alarm clock hasn't worked in four years," Mokuba reminded him.

"Then what? I'm not following you…" Kaiba said.

Mokuba sighed, "I mean, the person who usually wakes you up isn't here anymore."

_Vitani!_ Kaiba's mind seemed to shout at him. His eyes widened, "Where'd she go, Mokuba?"

"I don't know…she just climbed over the outer wall and disappeared," Mokuba shrugged, "She had all of her stuff with her too…are you gonna go after her, Seto…?"

"No," Kaiba told him, looking furious, "Go to bed, Mokuba."

"But it's only 6:00!"

"Then go play video games or something!"

Mokuba turned angrily and left the room, "Thanks a lot, Seto," he mumbled quietly, "No one ever stays, because of you… thanks a lot, big brother."

Kaiba had taken no notice. He slumped down in his chair, hand over his face. _Damn it all…_ With that, he opened up his computer again and began to type up a new advertisement for personal assistant, but stopped himself half-way through. _ She couldn't have gone… she just couldn't have…_

And why would she leave…? It didn't make sense. Confused, Seto got to his feet, crossing to the large windows and staring out at the darkening sky. _What would drive her to just up and leave? It's not like she was underpaid…_ he thought, a hint of anger crossing his face, _ She's just ungrateful…_

_ Or scared…_another subconscious thought suddenly voiced itself. But scared of what?? What would a woman as capable as that have to be afraid of? _Probably the same things you're scared of…_he told himself, _Attachments… commitments…_

But did she really? He had no way on knowing, and it was too late to talk to her about. He pressed his forehead against the cold glass of the window, chiding himself, _ Even if she **was **still here, it's not like you'd have the nerve to actually ask her…_

_ Shut up! I don't have time to listen to you; I'm running a business. Go away…_

_You know that running the business has gotten easier since she came._

_ So? It was easier with the other three idiots as well. Until they all left just like she did!_

_ But at least she was competent…you liked her._

Kaiba promptly shook his head, trying to clear his conflicting thoughts. Where had he left those sleeping pills?

* * * 

Vitani leaned back in the seat of the plane; not the least conspicuous way to travel, but she wasn't really expecting anyone to be looking for her. In fact, she didn't think either of the Kaiba brothers to notice she was missing until at least Monday morning, and by then she'd be half-way around the world. It was the last place she wanted to be heading, but she had no other choice. She had to start somewhere and the land of her birth was sure to hold some answers to the questions that were spinning around in her mind.

Desolately she turned to glance out the window. Nothing but black sky all around her. It was the kind of night you could really get lost in. It would be ending soon, though – she could sense it, even though they were too high up yet to see the dawn breaking. 

The pilot announcing that they would be beginning their descent interrupted her thoughts and she snapped her seatbelt back in place.


	7. Chapter 7 The First Duel: Trial By Gaunt...

A Quick Author's Note: The duel in this chapter includes cards from the newest release - "Magician's Force", just incase anyone thinks they can accuse us of using fake cards (which we've vowed never to do).

* * *

** Chapter 7**

** "The First Duel: Trial by Gauntlet"**

_ 2:30…Tristan should be here by now, _Tea thought irritably, glancing at her watch. She could hardly believe that she was sitting there, on a bench in the park in the middle of the freezing afternoon, waiting for him. She had been shocked when he'd called her, asking to meet, and she had considered hanging up on him before he could convince her. But, as always seemed to happen, he'd gotten to her, and so here she was. She sighed, crossing one leg over the other, staring up at the leafless trees, wondering if he was actually going to apologize for being late _in addition _to trying to patch things up from before.

The sound of footsteps behind her caught her attention and she turned. But it wasn't Tristan; it was a man in his mid-twenties, with disheveled black hair, dressed in a long black trench coat. He smiled slightly at her, "No need to be alarmed," he said, "I just wanted to ask you something."

"…What…?" she prompted, eyeing him warily.

"You are a friend of the boy Yugi Moto, are you not?" he asked.

Tea slowly got to her feet, feeling the slightest bit of panic begin to bubble up inside her. "Why…?"

The man raised his right hand towards her, "You are needed," he said, and before Tea could try to run, a wave of deep purple energy passed over her and her mind went blank. She swayed and Chalie moved forward to catch her as she fell in a swoon toward the bench. As he lifted her into his arms he shook his head, muttering, "Weak minds are so easy to manipulate…" Then with a turn that made his coat swirl around him, he left the area, taking the teenage girl with him.

* * *

Tristan knew he was running late. _If I'm lucky, she'll still be there… __ 2:45, yeah right, _ "Tea, I'm really sorry about this-" The teen began to yell as he rounded a corner into the park. He cut off suddenly, seeing only a large, muscular man standing near the park bench. He approached the man slowly, "Hey, uh… excuse me sir, but have you seen a girl about my age come through here?"

The man glared down at him, "Yes…she was here." 

"Uh…could ya tell me which way she went?" Tristan asked, wondering if he should be worried.

"I can do better than that," the man said, "I'll take you to her."

"Wait – what?" Tristan said. The man raised an arm and brought his straightened hand down on the teen's neck, knocking him unconscious instantly.

As Tristan fell, Basil reached out and grabbed him by the collar of his jacket. "Too easy…" he chuckled as he began to drag the younger man away.

* * *

_Why is everything so dark?_ was the first thought that entered the woozy mind of Tristan Taylor. The second was not a thought, but a feeling: the tremendous explosion of pain that coursed through his neck. Whatever that bastard had done would have lasting effects. He sat up sorely, blinking several times in a feeble attempt to adjust his eyes to the blackness around him. He began crawling about, trying to feel his way around towards any sort of exit, but instead landed upon something soft. It was cloth on a body, but who was it? 

Feeling a bit of suppressed guilty pleasure, he let himself explore the figure with his hands. He discovered it was female quickly, and had to keep himself from letting his hormones get the best of him. Even in the seemingly dire situation, his typical teenage male brain had to be kept in check. Moving hands up from the chest to the face and recognition clicked in quicker than he would have thought – _Tea! _

He knelt down close to her, putting his face inches away from hers. _Thank god, she's still breathing. _He shook her gently, "Tea…Tea, come on…wake up, please…"

He heard her moan and he wrapped his arms around her, overcome with relief. "Who is that…?" she asked groggily.

" 'Sme," he murmured, sitting up.

"Tristan…?" she guessed, "Where are we…?"

"Dunno… did that big guy get you too?"

"Big guy? No, he wasn't very big…tall, but skinny," she said, trying hard to remember, then changed the subject, "Why were you late, anyway?"

"Couldn't find my left shoe…you sure he wasn't this huge monster? Big muscles, little brain?" Tristan persisted, trying to put what little pieces of this confusing puzzle he had together.

"No…he was definitely wimpy looking…" Tea said, "He waved his hand at me and…everything went cold… I think I passed out…"

"Kay…" Tristan said quietly, thinking. Suddenly, the walls around them collapsed, causing Tea to shriek in fright. However, when the bit of dust around them cleared they found they were sitting in the moonlit entrance of the Domino Museum, four wooden pieces lying around them. The brown-haired boy stood, rubbing his neck in bewilderment, "What the heck are we doin' here?"

"How long were we out?" Tea asked back, looking around at the dim lighting of the room.

Tristan didn't reply, his eyes now transfixed on the two Duel Disk 2's sitting just beyond northern wood wall, which had dual arrows pointing exactly at the dueling machines.

"You suppose those are for us…?" Tea guessed.

"I got a feeling we might need 'em," Tristan told her, picking one up and fishing around in his pocket for his dueling deck. He had never been very good, but it still might come in handy for whatever was being planned for them. As she picked up the other one and fitted it on her arm, he added, "Listen…I have a feeling this is gonna get dangerous. So before we go any further I wanted to say…I'm sorry for being a jerk. And I'm glad you're talking to me again."

Tea smiled, though her eyes betrayed her worry. "Thank you…" she nodded, "I never like it when we fight anyway." She reached out and took hold of his hand, "_I'm _ glad I don't have to do this alone."

"Me too," he began to tread forward, but then came back with an after thought; "I suppose it would be pointless, but I'll try this first." Tristan pulled (and pushed) at the doors leading to the outside with all his might, but to no avail. He shrugged regretfully, "Never hurts…"

* * *

"The ignorant fools…" Seline said happily, "They have no idea what they're in for…" She was seated in Basil's lap, in a high-backed chair surrounded by security-cams screens. "Now…which on of you wants to go have fun with the children?"

"Let me, Mistress Seline," Basil said, looking eager for a fight.

She glanced over at Chalie, who was leaning against a wall a little ways off. "Any objections?"

"None…" Chalie said, "Let him have his fun – leave the bigger prey for me."

"Very well," she said, stroking Basil's short brown hair, "Go on."

He stood, lifting her up and setting her back down in the chair. Then with a small bow, he left the room. 

"This should be interesting…" Seline said, settling back in her chair.

"How much faith do you place in his dueling skills?" Chalie questioned, not moving from his spot.

"They're rash, to be sure, but he's not dealing with pros here," she said, "He'll be fine. Don't you trust him, Chalie?"

"No," the bodyguard told her moodily, "His magical aura is clouded. Why you ever trusted him with it is still beyond me, Ms. Seline. I should hope you know by now that my condition does not take away from my ability to control magic."

"Not at all," Seline said, turning towards him, looking hurt, "I thought by now you would have accepted him into our little circle…but clearly you feel that you're all I need, hmm?" She shifted slightly, leaning closer to his direction, her chin resting in one hand, a small smile on her lips.

"Clearly you feel he's quite enough for you," Chalie told her, his one eyebrow arching upward.

"You both have your fortes," she said, catching his drift and not letting him get the better of her, "Sometimes I just need someone like him around... when you fail to satisfy all my needs…"

"Your needs apparently can't be satisfied. What's this I heard from Basil about you bringing in someone else?" 

"It's nothing personal," she told him sincerely, "I've just found someone who will give us…and extra leg-up when it comes time to challenge the Pharaoh."

The physic snorted softly to himself. Seline's greed was getting out of control, in his opinion. Ever since Maeda was killed by the Pharaoh, she seemed to be jumping at ever opportunity to increase her collection or her staff. "You think I'm not a challenge for the Pharaoh?"

"I'm not saying that," she said, "You certainly have been jumping to a lot of conclusions lately, Chalie. Is it perhaps that you're feeling a bit jealous…?"

"Perhaps it's the fact that you've hired two new thugs in the last six months, when it was just the two of us for three years. Did Maeda's death push the time tables forward for our plan? You were planning to deal with him, weren't you?"

"Yes, I was planning to deal with him, but to be perfectly honest, I never had a clear picture of how. The events in Egypt were fortunate for us – even if the Shield is useless," she said then stood up and strode over to him, "And don't think that just because I've brought in some new muscle means that I don't still depend on you." She put a hand on his arm and added, "Maybe it's just because you've never really let me get close to you, Chalie…"

"With all due respect, ma'am, you're a bit too…aggressive, for my tastes." He walked slowly out of the room, smirking, "I've heard you with Basil." He waved a hand at her as he left, "Enjoy the show."

Seline slid back into her chair, pouting.

"You shouldn't get so worked up over him, Mistress," said a voice behind her and she swiveled the chair, spinning around to see a young man around Chalie's age, with black hair tied back in a ponytail approaching her.

"Todd…" she said, "I didn't here you come in…how long have you been here?"

"Just a few moments," he said, bowing slightly, "I hope I didn't startle you."

"No…I just didn't think you'd be back for a while yet. I trust everything has been going smoothly?"

"Yes, Mistress," Todd nodded, "I've gathered all the data that you've requested and downloaded it to your computer's main hard drive, available for your perusal."

"Very nice," she smiled, "Now…would you like to join me? Basil's just about to toy with the Pharaoh's friends – it should prove interesting, though Chalie seems to think that such things are above him…"

"Has he always been so…arrogant?" the young man asked earnestly.

Seline shrugged, "He's always been – what's the best word? – stiff…I can't remember the last time he's smiled…ahh, well. That works for him and he works for me, so I try to let him be."

"I see," suddenly he went stiff, his eyes widening. There was a flash of light, and the features on his face changed, becoming more mature, and frowning. When he spoke again, the voice was deeper, "I've done what you asked me to…now what about upholding your end of our bargain?"

"In good time, Shem," she said, "In good time. I've more work for you to do yet. Now please, your host was just about to keep me company during this viewing…could you please let him out again?"

He glared down at the woman, "I don't trust you around my host. I'll have to refuse."

"Don't trust me…?" she echoed, spinning the chair back around to face the screens, "I'm not sure I follow you…"

"You know perfectly well what I mean. He needs nothing of the sort from you, Seline. Think of this as punishment for not telling me what you say you 'know' about my past," Shem smirked, almost taunting her.

"If you doubt that I have any real information for you, you're free to leave, you know," she said sourly, "But I know you must be less than skeptic, otherwise you would never have sought me out."

"I trust you… for now. At least you told me my name," he took in a deep breath sharply and gritted his teeth, then released the air slowly, "Please accept my apologies, Ms. Seline," he mumbled quietly, as a sign of admitting defeat.

"Of course, Shem," she said, motioning for him to come stand beside her, "If I didn't like you, I never would have brought you this far…remember that."

* * *

"This could get really annoying real fast," Tristan told Tea angrily, as he ripped down another arrow from the wall, this one pointing further down the hallway into almost complete blackness.

"Well…it's not like we have much of a choice," Tea sighed.

Tristan said nothing, but continued to walk into the darkness. He hadn't gotten far, when suddenly a glow emitted not too far ahead of them; a glow that was in the curious shape…of a Duel Disk. Taylor put a hand up, to stop Tea from advancing any further, "Who's there?!"

There was the sound of metal clashing against the marble floor and a bolt of lighting illuminated the room. Frightened, Tea grabbed hold of Tristan, whose eyes were narrowed, focusing on the figure in the room. It was the brute who had attacked him in the park, dressed in a black muscle-shirt and pants, and clutching a long golden staff, which was emitting small white sparks.

The man smiled, "I believe you remember me, boy." He waved the long staff again, and the entire room lit up, "I am Basil, holder of the Millennium Staff, and you are the first to face The Gauntlet!"

Tristan clenched his fists tightly at his side, "So, what's the Gauntlet?"

Tea was looking nervously at the man's long pole in his right hand. It had the symbol of the Millennium Items on it! Was it one of the new Items Yugi had told her about? 

Basil sneered at them, "You need not concern yourself with the details for now, but I'll give you the basics. Mistress Seline is on the highest level of this building. The Pharaoh will be challenged to get through the duelists on each level in order to face her."

"Why in the world do you think Yugi would ever accept this challenge? And that still doesn't explain why you need us here," Tristan told him, folding his arms crossly.

"Boy, you just answered both of your questions. Does that give you any hints?" 

"Tristan…" Tea said softly, tugging on his jacket sleeve, "I think we're here as bait…"

"Correct," Basil told her smugly, "However, I offer you this chance: as the Pharaoh will do, you may duel to get to the top of the museum. I will be your first opponent."

Tristan stepped forward, "Fine, bastard! I'll duel you!"

The man waved a finger playfully at them, "Now, do you really believe yourself a challenge for me? Both of you may duel me at once, unless either of you has an objection…"

The teenage boy turned to look at Tea, "I don't want you getting hurt; I can handle this." 

"No, let me help," she insisted, "Yami always said we're stronger when we work together. And I'm not gonna stand aside and be a cheer-leader anymore."

"Enough bickering! Time to make a choice, now!" Basil shouted, his Duel Disk 2 beginning to count to 4000 life points.

"You sure about this…?" Tristan asked, even though he knew it was too late to reconsider anything, as both their DD2s were also counting up their life points.

"I'm positive," Tea nodded, and Tristan couldn't help but admire her bravery.

"It's settled," Tristan told his opponent, masking the fear that was creeping up within him with determination. He had never been a really good duelist, but this guy should be easy enough… hopefully.

"Good," Basil replied, "Let's see now, ladies first so… you'll have to decide among yourselves who gets first turn honors." He man finished grinning at Tristan as he pulled his five cards out (Troop Dragon, Jar of Greed, Mystical Space Typhoon, UFO Turtle, and Mirage of Nightmare).

The teenage boy growled low in his throat, a vein on his temple throbbing.

"Um…do you wanna go first…?" Tea asked him timidly, regretting her words almost instantly, as he nearly blew steam out of his ears.

After a short moment, he managed to calm down, catch Tea's apologetic look and then draw his six cards (Decayed Commander, Gaia Power, Thunder of Ruler, Zombie Tiger, and Reinforcements). He concentrated on his opening hand for a moment, thinking hard, "I'll set two cards face-down (Thunder of Ruler/Reinforcements) and summon Decayed Commander (1000/1500) in attack mode!" He nodded at Tea as his scary, zombie warrior pulled itself out of the ground, clutching a short, rusted blade.

Tea pulled six cards out of her deck as well (Elf's Light, Soul of the Pure, Goddess of Whim, Happy Lover, Tenderness, Numinous Healer), hoping to continue the good start that Tristan had given them, "I'll summon Goddess of Whim (950/700) in attack mode!" A woman dressed in a green dress similar to that of the ancient Greeks appeared on the field, her green-leaf hair falling down gracefully over her shoulders. She glanced warily at Tristan's zombie monster and then turned to face Basil. "Now I'll place one card face-down (Numinous Healer) and play Soul of the Pure! This magic card will increase my life points by 800!" Her Duel Disk beeped and clicked, then began to count upwards. Tristan/Tea: 4000/4800 – Basil: 4000.

Basil smiled broadly as Tea ended her turn, "Why don't we make this a bit more interesting, hmm?" He raised his staff up again, and directed it at his opponents. Instantly, each duelist was surrounded by a ring of blazing hot fire.

Tea clapped a hand over her mouth to keep from screaming in surprise, as Tristan shouted "What the hell?! How did you _do _that??"

"A simple task for the powers of the Millennium Staff!" Basil told him, his Item glowing brightly, "Now let me explain how this is going to work. Do you see how the flames around the girl are slightly larger than those surrounding you and me, boy? As our life points increase, the flames will begin to die out, moving further away. However, when life points decrease, the ring of fire will move in closer. He who loses his life points shall lose much more than that!"

"What? You can't-"

"Oh, but I can! Did you think this would be friendly competition? Or a simple game of fun? This…" Basil waved his Staff furiously and the world around them dissolved, being replaced by dark purple storm clouded that surrounded them on all sides, "Is a Shadow Game!"

Trying to hide his panic, Tristan glanced quickly over at Tea, who caught his eye and said, "I had a feeling it was going to end up like this…"

"My move!" Basil pulled the next card from his deck (Mother Grizzly), "I will set two cards face-down (MST/ Jar of Greed) and play the magic card Mirage of Nightmare!" The green-rimmed card appeared on the field and several zombie-like people came walking out of it. They began to look around, as if seeing things only they could view. 

The muscular man grinned, "This magic card will allow me to draw cards until I have four in my hand, but only when it is my opponent's turn. Then I have to discard as man cards as I drew." He moved another card from his and laid it down on the field, "Now, I summon UFO Turtle (1400/1200) in attack mode!" Lumbering out of the mist came a huge, wrinkled, green turtle. On its back, instead of a shell, was a metal dome with flashing lights. It blinked slowly, settling down beside Basil.

Basil directed his staff, "UFO Turtle, attack the boy's pathetic monster and make him feel the flames of the shadows!" The monster roared and blasted flames from its mouth, the wave of heat blasting through the ring around Tristan.

"Nice try buddy, but I'm activating Reinforcements!" Tristan shouted, slamming a button on the back of his Duel Disk. Instantly the Decayed Commander was surrounded by dozens of foot soldiers, each offering the zombie a different weapon to use. It selected a new sword, which raised its stats to 1500/1500. With a single stroke from his new blade, the fire beam was dispelled and the Turtle roared in pain as it smashed into thousands of tiny dust particles.

Tristan/Tea: 4000/4800 – Basil: 3900. 

"All right!! That was awesome!" Tea cheered. Then the ground shook and she gasped as a _ second _UFO Turtle took the place of the first one. "Wait – I thought it just got destroyed!" she said, "What's going one??"

Basil erupted in laughter, even as the flames encircling him inched closer, "You fools! My UFO turtle's special effect allows me to summon another fire monster from my deck with 1500 or less attack power! I chose the second of my Turtles, which will now take a bite out of your life points, little girl!" The second reptile launched the same attack as its predecessor, this one engulfing Tea's monster in the red hot heat of fire, which continued on to hit the teenage girl. 

Tea let out a cry of pain and surprise as she recoiled from the flames. Luckily, she was able to regain her composure quickly enough to strip off her flaming jacket and toss it out of her ring of fire. 

"Tea, are you alright?!" Tristan asked worriedly.

"I'll…be fine…" she panted, "Just as soon as I activate…this: Numinous Healer!" She pressed a button on her DD2 and a tall blonde woman in a nurses scrubs and small feathered wings jutting out from her back appeared on the field. She turned towards the teenage girl and waved her hands over her. A golden glow surrounded Tea and the singed skin on her arms and face healed, as her life points climbed up to 5350.

"The Numinous Healer… it's just another pathetic trap card. They won't save you from me forever. Now get on with your turns before I lose my patience."

"Fine," Tristan pulled out his next card (Rush Recklessly), "Now, I'll set one card face-down (Rush Recklessly) and play the field card Gaia Power, which increases all earth monsters by 500 attack points!" A large, healthy tree appeared in the middle of the field, apparently unaffected by the roaring flames around it, "Next I summon Zombie Tiger (1900/1600)!"

A half-mummified zombie rushed out of the card, standing next to the commander, "Attack!" Tristan commanded, as Basil drew his two cards (Rock Spirit and Royal Decree) from his deck for Mirage of Nightmare.

The two monsters lunged forward, Decayed Commander holding its sword high, the Tiger's claws bared. The sword slashed through the first Turtle and Basil had barely summoned the next one when the Tiger latched onto it and tore it to bits. Tristan/Tea: 4000/5350 – Basil: 3300

"Take that!" Tristan told him. If Tea could draw a good monster, then they'd have a big lead on this guy, "Where's your next fire monster, huh?"

"That was the last one, I'm afraid," Basil replied, shaking his head. _At least for now…_ "Now I shall activate Jar of Greed, letting me draw another card!" Basil declared, his purple backed trap adding a fifth card (Giant Rat) to his hand. 

Tea selected her next card (Pineapple Blast), "Now I set one card (Pineapple Blast) and one monster (Tenderness (700/1400)) in defense mode!"

"My move," The bodyguard picked up his next card out of his rapidly thinning deck (Pot of Greed), "I discard two from my hand for Mirage of Nightmare (Troop Dragon and Giant Rat), but that activates the special effect of my Dragon monster I threw away!" Instantly, a small, heavily-armed green dragon appeared on the field, hiding behind the its shield.

Basil smiled at the surprised looks on his opponents faces, "When Troop Dragon (700/800) is sent to the graveyard in any way, I can summon another in face-up attack or defense mode! Next I play the magic card Pot of Greed, which allows me to draw two more cards (Garuda the Wind Spirit and Aqua Spirit)!"

"All he ever does is keep drawing cards…" Tristan groaned, "What's he stalling for, anyway?"

"Relax," Tea told him, "If he keeps going like this, he just might deck himself out."

Basil seemed not to hear them. "Finally, I set one monster (Mother Grizzly (1400/1200)) in defense mode and one card face-down (Royal Decree)!"

"Geez! All that and you're still playing defense?" Tristan cried out, completely disgusted with what he considered to be such poor dueling, "Let me show you how Duel Monsters is supposed to be played! It mostly involves me pummeling you to the ground because of your lack of strategy!" He hurriedly pulled his next card from the dueling machine (Cyber Commander), "I summon Cyber Commander (1400/1400) in attack mode! He also gains the power boost from my field card, making him even stronger! Next I activate the special effect of my Zombie Tiger, which allows him to form a union with the Decayed Commander, raising his stats by 500/500 to 2000/2500!" The zombie leader hopped up on top of the Tiger, and instantly the monster grew in power.

"Activate face-down card: Rush Recklessly!" The brown-haired boy shouted, his magic card flipping face-up, "This will increase my Commander's attack points by another 700, to a total of 2100/1400! Now let's see how your Troop Dragon stands up to that!" The living military commando let loose a barrage of machine gun fire, felling the little Dragon. Instantly, yet another took its place.

"What??" Tristan cried, "Not again!"

"It seems that despite all of your work, my monsters have a knack for protecting me!" Basil said, grinning cruelly. 

"Fine, Decayed Commander attack his last Troop Dragon!" The Tiger rushed forward and the Commander beheaded the last dragon easily. Tristan took in a deep breath, then sighed. At least that was over with. A thought suddenly struck him as he watched Basil pull another card from his deck (Spirit of the Flames), "Hey… what are you waiting for anyway? You were the one who challenged us, remember?"

"That is none of you concern boy! You'll know what I have planned for you when the time is right! Now let the girl make her move so I can end this duel!"

Tea drew her next card (Ancient Elf), "I summon the Ancient Elf (1450/1200) in Attack mode!" Out of the mist, stepped a tall, feminine figure clad in purple armor, clutching long purple and blue staff. "Attack his face-down monster!" _The sooner we get at this guy's life points the better! I hope it's not another one of his monsters that lets him search for more..._

The Elf struck, smashing into a Grizzly Bear. The creature roared in anger and disappeared. When nothing new came to the field, Tea let out a small cheer.

"Celebrate if you want," Basil told her, "You destroyed my Mother Grizzly. I could summon another water-type monster to the field if I wanted to, but I've got much bigger plans! Before you end your turn, I activate Mystical Space Typhoon, to destroy my own Mirage of Nightmare!" Several lightning bolts hit the field, each one destroying one of the zombies.

"What'd you go and do something stupid like that for?" Tristan asked, barely able to contain his laughter.

"Simple," Basil said, drawing his next card (Spirit of the Flames), "Now I don't have to discard anything from my hand for Mirage of Nightmare's effect! This is the end of the line, fools!" Basil's graveyard began to drop cards off at his feet slowly, each one landing softly by their master, "By removing five monsters from play I'm able to summon my five Spirit monsters from my hand!"

Five towers burst forth out of the field: two pillars of fire on either side of Basil and three others of wind, water and stone in front of him. Out of each tower came a monster: two tall, muscular, satanic-looking creatures; one Roman soldier made of stone and metal; one half-man half-bird with an impressive wingspan; and one petite, green-skinned girl, who (in anyone else's control would've appeared friendly) was staring at the teens with eyes glowing red.

"Two Spirit of the Flames (1700/1000), one Garuda the Wind Spirit (1600/1200), one Rock Spirit (2200/1000), and one Aqua Spirit (1600/1200) all in attack mode!" Basil shouted out happily, admiring each of his creations. He grinned sinisterly, "And each with their own unique effect. You'll see as I decimate…" Basil looked from duelist to duelist, then pointed at Tea, "Your life points!"

Tea froze, eyes wide. Her arms were still stinging from the last attack…there was no way she could survive a direct attack!

"I'm not gonna let that happen!" Tristan yelled, alarmed, "I activate Thunder of Ruler! It's a trap card that causes you to skip your Battle Phase for one turn!"

"Nice try, kid, but I told you your pathetic trap cards wouldn't save you from me! I activate Royal Decree!" A floating palace appeared over the entire field, casting shadows over everything. The flickers of light from the flames made everything seem even scarier. The armored man who had appeared out of Tristan's trap card looked up from blocking off Basil's monsters, fear in his eyes. He bowed down to the palace, then shattered into thousands of little pieces.

"No! Attack me instead! Please!" Tristan shouted, trying to distract Tea from Basil. _I should never have let Tea be in this duel! If I had only said no, she would still have a chance!_

Basil pointed his Staff at Tea, who was paralyzed with fear. All five of Basil's monsters rushed forwards, intent on destroying Tea.

There was a swift, fierce blast of fire from the first Spirit of the Flames. At the last possible second, it was intercepted, frying the Cyber Commander to a crisp. Tea fell over backwards, nearly backing into the ring of fire around her. Tristan/Tea: 2900/5350- Basil: 3300.

The fires around Tristan closed in, making him sweat even more profusely, "What the hell… I should only have lost 800 life points…"

"This is what you get for trying to save your girlfriend. My Spirit of the Flames has the ability to increase its own attack power by 300 points every time it strikes. You want me to destroy you first, then fine!" He pointed his staff at Tristan, who's Decayed Commander was pounded by the Rock Spirit. Tea watched in horror as the Spirit of the Flames brought Tristan's life points down to 700 with a direct attack that burned his jacket and shirt clean off, leaving bleeding burn marks on his face and chest. 

The fires around the boy had closed to within mere feet of his body, threatening to engulf him. He turned his head weakly towards Tea, giving her the thumbs-up sign just as Garuda the Wind Spirit attacked him. The flames circle turned into a column of fire, and when it disappeared, Tristan was gone.

"Noooo!!" Tea cried, still on the floor, stretching out in vain to where he had been, "Don't leave me…please…" she drew her hand back in and, head hung, placed it over her deck. There was no way she could hope to win with Tristan gone…she couldn't do it alone.

"Pathetic," Basil spat, staring out at her as the ring of fire began to creep towards the girl, "You should be thankful that Ms. Seline wants Chalie and I to save your bodies for the Gauntlet. You will be Level 1 challenges for the Pharaoh you hold so dear. Goodbye!"

Tea looked up just in time to see Basil's figure disappear behind the wall of fire. She closed her eyes, waiting for the horrible pain that she was sure would come, but before the actual flames reached her, she passed out from the heat and her body and soul were separated. As her body fell through a hole in the floor into the awaiting net that Chalie had constructed, her soul was high-flying, heading straight to the Shadow Realm…


	8. Chapter 8 Dredging Up Bad Memories

Chapter 8

"Dredging Up Bad Memories"

_Crash! _A small glass vile slipped out of Shadi's hands. 

"Master…?" Void asked, looking up from his books that were spread on the floor around him, "Are you alright…?"

Shadi, who was also seated on the stone floor with herbs and scrolls scattered about, looked down regretfully at the broken vile. "I sense something just now…" he said slowly, "that I'd hoped I'd never sense again…"

"What is it?" Void pressed on.

"Two souls passing into the Shadow Realm," Shadi said bluntly, "The magical balance is being disturbed…and it is centralizing itself in Japan…"

"You don't suppose…?" Void asked, nervousness rising in his voice.

Shadi turned his gaze on his pupil, grateful to see the energy in his once empty eyes, and the color in his once deathly-pale skin. The past six months had been most beneficial for the boy – he was really beginning to come alive. And the fear in his eyes now, struck a chord in the Egyptian that he'd never known he'd had. "No…Jetsu's essence is not what I feel coming from Japan," he said. 

Void breathed a sigh of relief, "No…he's gone…I'm just being stupid…"

Shadi rubbed the back of his neck and said, "I do not wish to alarm you…but you're worries may not have been misplaced…"

"I don't understand…" Void said.

"For some time now," Shadi said, beginning to clean up the shattered glass in front of him, "I have sensed your old master's essence far away from here…I said nothing until now because I was not sure that I was correct, but now I am certain."

"What??" Void asked.

"The presence I have felt is arriving here in Egypt now," Shadi said, "I do believe its destination is the home of the Millennium Rod…and the Ishtars…we shall soon be paying them a visit." He paused for a moment, as he stood to dispose of the broken vial, then changed the subject, "I am sorry, but this bit of distress has caused me to ruin the newest batch of your medicine…it will be a few days before the ingredients are ripe again. Do you have enough to last until then?"

"If I ration it correctly I'll manage, master. I have suffered much worse after all…"

Shadi nodded, "Good. Now, come…we must prepare for travel. Cairo is a good distance away."

* * *

"Hey, has anyone seen the doofus?" Joey asked, sidling into the boys' locker room before P.E. on Monday morning, duffle bag slung over one shoulder.

"If you mean Tristan, then no," Yugi said, looking up from the padlock on his locker, "I was expecting him to come in with you."

"Huh…" Joey said, frowning. He slammed his locker and it sprang open. "Well, I walked past his house this morning to meet him, but he wasn't there."

"Come to think of it, I haven't seen Tea around either," came a voice from behind one of the lockers, revealing Bakura (fully clad in dorky gym clothing).

"Gee…I wonder what _they're _up to…" Joey said slyly, pulling his shirt off.

"Joey!!" Yugi said, blushing slightly, "I wouldn't talk – I didn't see you all weekend and I know Mai was in town."

"It wasn't anything like that, Yug! We was just hangin' out…as friends, ya know?" the blonde told his short friend, arms outstretched in exasperation.

"Right…" Yugi said, folding up his shirt and putting it in his locker, "Friends…is that the title Mai decided on?"

"Naw, that's what I rate our current status at!" Joey replied enthusiastically, rubbing his chin thoughtfully, "I'm hopin' to get past that phase soon, if ya know what I'm sayin', right Yug?" 

Bakura walked off shaking his head, "I'm not hearing this… I'm not hearing this…"

"Listen Joey," Yugi said as he and Joey trailed after Bakura a brief moment later, "Just how serious are you about Mai, anyway?"

"What'd ya mean by that?" he asked, raising an eyebrow at his best friend, "I'm as serious as she is, man!" He knew this was an evasive answer but in all truthfulness, he had never really asked Mai how serious she was about him, so it was best not to get too definitive.

"That doesn't really say much, seeing as I don't talk to Mai that often…" Yugi said, "But really…you wouldn't do anything…um, reckless…would you?"

Wheeler went red around the cheeks and turned away, 'Dunno what you're talkin' about, Yug. Not a clue…"

"Now I _know _you're lying," Yugi said, "I'm almost fifteen, remember? I'm not a little kid anymore. You can talk to me about this kinda stuff, can't you?"

"Yeah, I guess so," Joey told him with a sigh, "I'm still getting' used that this, ya know? I usually only talk ta Tristan about these things, but he's not here… Nevermind," Joey said, shaking his head, "No, I wouldn't do anything without her consent. Is that good enough for ya?"

"I don't think you'd really need to worry about her not consenting," the younger boy said bluntly, "If she still kisses you like she did at the airport, I'd say you're pretty safe as far as that goes."

"Yeah, well…" the older male said, completely flustered, "She does…" he finished meekly, his voice getting softer.

"I'd say you're a little more than friends, huh?" Yugi concluded, grinning.

"HEY! MOTO, WHEELER! GET YOUR BUTTS IN GEAR!" the blast of the megaphone combined with the gym teacher's already resounding voice nearly made both Joey and Yugi deaf and they were forced to abandon their conversation for running laps. It was a pretty good trade off in Joey's opinion…

* * *

Vitani needed sleep desperately, but refused to give in to it. Falling asleep would mean falling prey to the nightmares again…and she couldn't risk that. Instead, she shoved her exhaustion to the back of her mind and plodded on. The city of Cairo was large, and it was mid-morning by the time she found what she was looking for. The home of the Ishtars was a two story stone building near the outskirts of the city, nothing out of the ordinary, which Vitani guessed was intentional. From what she had heard about them, the three siblings had never been normal, but were now attempting to seem that way and she couldn't blame them. It was all she'd ever wanted as well.

But now it seemed unlikely that she would ever get it. She sighed as she scanned the area. No one was around – they were all hurrying to get their errands done before the heat of mid-day struck. Swiftly, she picked the lock on the front door and entered. Inside it was dark and cool, with just a bit of sunlight peaking through the drawn curtains. She made short work of searching the house, and quickly came upon what she wanted: the Millennium Rod.

It was placed in a stone mold in one of the bedrooms, with a glass lid over top of it. Drawing out the wooden sword she had brought along, she smashed the glass and only then, did she realize that the sword in her hands was not wooden, but gold. Somehow, the Millennium Sword had replaced itself within her sheath. She dropped it, but even as she did, it began to glow once more, and the pounding in her head started again.

Unwillingly, her hands moved towards the Rod. She struggled, finally broke out of the invisible hold and instantly began clutching her head, moaning in pain. _ What's happening…? _she thought weakly.

**_Take the Rod for me, Vitani… _**said a voice in her head, **_Take it!_**

****"NO!!" Vitani cried aloud, "Leave me alone!!"

At that instant the door to the room swung open and she heard a young man's voice, "What on Earth?!"

She staggered towards the voice, "Help me, please…"

She fell forwards, hitting the floor as the man's voice seemed to call from far away, "Odion! Ishuzu! Come quick!"

* * *

"Hey…I think she's coming around."

"Maybe now we'll get some answers."

"Odion, please…"

Vitani rubbed her eyes with the back of her hands, and then looked around. She was lying on her back on something soft and a woman with long black hair was sitting beside her. Further back, a young man with blonde hair and a man who looked to be in his mid-thirties with a long black ponytail were watching her as well. The Ishtars: Ishizu, Marik and Odion. 

She sat up quickly, which caused her head to throb painfully again, and Ishizu reached out to her, gently pushing her onto her back. "Careful now…you don't want to hurt yourself," she said.

"I…I don't understand…" Vitani murmured, "Why am I still here? Why are you being so nice to me…? I tried to rob you…"

"Yes…throwing you out was Odion's first idea," Ishizu said and the older man shrugged, "But I had foreseen your coming and wanted to ask you a few questions."

"Like what?" Vitani asked.

Marik came closer, kneeling down next to Ishizu. "Like why you were trying to steal the Millennium Rod. And what were you yelling at when I found you?" he asked, looking worried.

Vitani swallowed hard. All three of them had their eyes on her. There was no way she could lie to them – they would know. She sat up again, more slowly this time. "I work for Seto Kaiba…" she began.

"And he ordered you to do this?" Odion said.

"No!" Vitani said quickly, "No I chose to come here myself…"  
"Who were you planning to give the Rod to?" Ishizu asked.

"Kaiba…" Vitani admitted, "It rightfully belongs to him after all…"

"That's true," Ishizu nodded, "But when I offered it to him he turned it down. He chose to deny his ancestry."

"Well, I don't know about that part," Vitani said, "But I do know he believes in the magic – he wants to have it now – to bring his hologram-technology up to a new level."

"I see…" Ishizu said, "Yet I sense that you know the dangers of a Millennium Item…why would you risk the health of Kaiba and those around him by presenting him with this."

"Because it would make him happy," Vitani said without thinking. She clapped a hand over her mouth immediately afterwards, but Ishizu was smiling knowingly.

"Who would want _Seto Kaiba _to be happy?" Odion snorted.

"Odion!" Ishizu said, "Please…try to show some restraint." He frowned at her, but was silent. She turned back to Vitani, "I am sorry, but we cannot let you have the Rod. I only offered it to Kaiba because it was his by birthright, but truthfully, I was relieved when he turned it down. I don't think he would ever be able to control the fierce negative energies that swell within it."

"I think each Item would be subordinate to its true owner," Vitani said firmly, and she noticed Marik turn slightly red. 

"I'd like to share your optimism," Ishizu said, "But I'm afraid I cannot. I'm not willing to risk any more lives by releasing the Rod's power once again. You have come here in vain."

Vitani turned away angrily, staring out the nearest window at the empty, dusty street.

"We will not turn you out on the street, however," Ishizu said, rising to her feet, "You are welcome to spend the night and catch the morning flight back to Japan." On that note, she and Odion left the room, leaving Marik standing there, still flushing angrily.

"If each Item is subordinate to its true owner, then why do you still have the Sword?" he asked, feeling his temper rise. The young Egyptian man had been fairly well behaved after the incident at Battle City, but even that memory could not curb his enthusiasm or anger at times, "I want to know what you were yelling about before! Does the Sword no longer listen to you?"

Vitani jerked her head back around to glare at him, ready to say something – anything to get him to leave, but one look at his face and she saw a piece of herself in him. Her anger faded from her expression, replaced with a more subdued, sullen look. "How much do you know about me, Marik?" she asked.

"I know that your name is Vitani Icari. You were the servant to Lord Jetsu for two years, before the Pharaoh destroyed him six months ago. I also know that the Millennium Sword was his possession, not yours," Ishtar told her, holding his arms straight down at his side.

Vitani leaned back against the cushions of the futon. "I suppose there's no point in denying any of it," she said, "I'm not proud of who I was – but I'm not that anymore…at least…I thought I wasn't…" her voice trailed off and she searched his face imploringly.

"And what does that mean? Yami killed Jetsu over the summer. The Shield was the only thing left acknowledging his existence. I heard that someone stole it soon afterwards…" Marik added thoughtfully, sitting down in one of the chairs across from the couch.

"Yes…the Shield was stolen from the Egyptian officials that recovered it from the wreckage of the Pyramid," she nodded, "But I'm beginning to think that it was not the only Item he wove his influence into…" Slowly, she unsheathed the Sword, running the fingers of her free hand down the blade, staring at it intensely, as if trying to see inside it.

"If you can't control the Sword, I suggest you leave it here with the Rod. My sister and I can look after it." Marik leaned forward, trying to get Vitani's attention off of the Millennium Item she was fingering, "A very dangerous magic was used in combination with that Item, you know. He knew more about the dark magic of Egypt's past that any of us."

"I know he did…" Vitani said, "But I don't think you or your siblings can protect me from it…from him…" She dropped the blade on the floor with a soft clang, as if suddenly afraid to touch it.

"Him? His influence may remain, but Jetsu Maeda is dead, Vitani," Marik stood and started towards the door, "I believe it's time that you realized that and got on with your life. I'm sorry, but like my sister said: the Rod stays here. And I recommend you leave the Sword as well." With that he left, leaving Vitani all alone in the living room.

Vitani watched him go, disappointed. Of all people, she'd thought he'd have understood. For the first time that morning she had heard Jetsu's voice, egging her on as she attempted to steal the Rod. It had been as clear as if he'd been standing beside her. But he was dead, so that could only mean she was going crazy…or was she…? She looked back down at the Sword and was horrified to see that it was glowing slightly red. She scrambled off the couch and back against the far wall, watching it anxiously. She hadn't meant to bring it – she had made certain that it was stashed away in her room back at Kaiba Manor…so how was it here?? _It's true…_she thought, _no one can save me from him… I'll never be free from him…_

"Be strong, Vitani," came a commanding voice from the doorway. Odion walked into the room without looking at the young woman and made his way over to the Sword. It had stopped glowing, which made the tall, well-built man frown. He picked up the Item and offered it hilt-first to her, "Have courage; He will not be back. His memory can haunt your dreams, but only if you let him. Show no fear and those that seek to challenge you will fail." 

Vitani took the blade and sheathed it, not looking away from his piercing gaze for an instant. "I'll try…" she said, "But what if –"

"There must be no doubts," Odion cut her off, "Doubts only lead to weakness, Vitani. Banish him from you thoughts now. Be who you choose to be – not who your past dictates."

She nodded, still held as if mesmerized by his eyes – where had she seen such strength before…? "I will…" she said.

Odion looked skeptical that she was telling the truth, but turned and left the room without a second look at her. He could only offer her advice; it was up to her how she used it.

* * *

By the time night fell, Vitani could hold off sleep no longer, no matter how hard she tried. She finally slumped over on the couch from exhaustion near midnight. But the instant she had closed her eyes, they snapped open again, now dark green. She sat up and stealthily climbed the stairs up to the room where the Rod was held. 

Ishizu was fast asleep when the door to her room was pushed silently open, and Vitani's shadowed figure crept inside, Sword sheathed. The glass on the case for the rod had not yet been repaired. She reached inside, but her wrist was caught by another thin hand. It was a deeper voice than Vitani's that grunted in annoyance as she turned to face Ishizu, who now seemed to have been faking sleep.

"My necklace warned me you would try this again," she whispered, "And it also told me that you are not Vitani. What do you have to say to that, Maeda?"

**"Your Necklace is a pathetic excuse for a Millennium Item, Ishtar,"** Jetsu pulled the Sword out of its sheath and pointed it at Ishizu, **"It just pales in comparison, doesn't it?"**

"I won't let you get away with controlling her," Ishizu said, not flinching.

**"You have no say in the matter. I am the master, not her. Just like old times…"** Jetsu said smirking frigidly.

"She will fight you."

**"She's already tried. No one can fight the inevitable and be successful. Now as much as I've enjoyed this little conversation, I believe its time I took the Millennium Rod and departed."** He reached back for the Millennium Rod, never taking his eyes off of Ishizu, but he did lower the Sword.

"Do you really think you can live through her forever?" Ishizu asked him as he backed towards the open window.

**"I won't need to,"** Jetsu responded, finally turning away from her, **"Soon she'll be dead. With just a little bit of help from an old friend, I'll be able to return to a body of my own. Enjoy life, while you can." **He leaped out of the window and down to the streets two stories down. It took mere seconds for Lord Jetsu to disappear into the night, out of Ishizu's gaze.

The former tomb-keeper hung her head, and was silent a long moment. Then a voice from behind her made her snap to attention, "All is not lost, Miss Ishtar." She turned to see Shadi standing in her doorway, visible only by the moonlight pouring through the open window.

"You…" she said.

"Can you really be surprised to see me?" Shadi asked her.

"I suppose not," she shrugged, leaning back against the windowsill, "But what do you mean all is not lost? Is there anyway we can destroy him without the girl losing her life as well?"

"Jetsu was within one soul of destroying the world last time. I don't intend to give him a second chance…even if there are sacrifices involved," Shadi told the elder of the Ishtar siblings, his hard stare fixed upon the window from which Jetsu had left.

Ishizu nodded sadly, "I understand…what do you intend to do?"


	9. Chapter 9 The Second Duel: Stakes

A Shout-Out From the Authors: Here we have a rare occasion in which the authors ACTUALLY RESPOND to their reviews! Due to the fact that we now have over 100, we thought this was reason for something new!

To "omegadramon": You no speak English good none. Please proof-read before you send us your "Ideals".

To "Link007": Yes, we have seen the eppy where Ishizu gave Yugi the Necklace. We dunno if he gave it back, but this our story, so we're using our artistic license.

To "Behold The Void", "DBZ Fanfiction Queen", "Peace Writer", "unknown reviewer", "YamiBakuraChan": Thanks so much for your kind words.

To "LoneWolf16": (And this goes to a couple other people too, I think) The Sword is a powerful Item...much more powerful than the Necklace could ever hope to be. Let's be clear about this - it couldn't even stop Kaiba, when he had no magic on his side - so how powerful could it be?? 

To "HellDragon" and "SulliMike23": First...what's wrong with teen romance?? Teen-angsty-romance stuff provides the much needed stress-relief in this story...otherwise it would just get too heavy and nobody would be able to get off the ground from the weight of it to review and tell us that it was too heavy... Look forward to those pics though, if you can get 'em scanned, HD. Next, Odion had such a tiny part to begin with, why must he stir up such fuss? How would you feel if someone (who you knew was once working a major psycho) broke into your home and tried to steal the manifestation of all the evil you have ever known?? Wouldn't you be a little high-strung, to say the least?? We worked hard trying to get Odion to feel right...I'm sorry if your standards are so high...

To "Time Mage": Yours got a little long, so we e-mailed it to you.

To "sdrive": You have lots of good points, but they get buried under all the nonsense with your "yami". Why turn the review into a place for "him" to perform? Your ideas would be understood much easier without "him".

To "AG The Master": As we have said before, we will be accepting NO addition OCs in this story. We have plenty of our own already. (And boy, are they hard to keep track of).

Thank you all for your reviews, in general! Now - enjoy the new chapter!!

* * *

Chapter 9

"The Second Duel: Stakes"

The incessant beeping of his $250 watch made Seto Kaiba vaguely aware that it was 1:00 in the morning, but it really made little difference to the boy billionaire. It was Monday night, as apparent by the blackness outside of his study window. She had officially been gone for over 48 hours now. Somehow, he had expected her to come crawling back to him by now, but perhaps that was just wishful thinking. 

He let himself slide further down in the leather chair, so low that his chin rested on his chest, letting his depression roll in waves over him. He couldn't really figure out why this was getting to him – what ever happened to 'emotions get in the way of survival'? He closed his eyes and without intending it, brought her face into his mind. The smile she'd given him back in the Al Karnak Hospital…is just came so naturally to her, even after everything she'd been through. How was it possible for someone who had crossed the line and returned to have retained that? 

He was jolted out of his musings as his chair suddenly swerved under him, spinning so quickly that he was thrown to the floor before he could even try to prevent it. Rubbing the back of his now-sore neck, he looked up to see his kid brother standing over him. "What's the big idea, Mokuba?" he asked, puzzled, "Why aren't you asleep?"

"You haven't moved from that chair for hours, Seto!" the younger Kaiba brother told him angrily, "You even took the day off from work! You never do that! I know you like Miss Vitani as much as I do, so why are you just sitting there?" Mokuba seemed to be building up steam in his rant, so many unspoken emotions bubbling up to the surface.

"What do you expect me to do?" Kaiba replied, dully picking himself up and settling back down in his chair, which was now facing his brother, "Go dashing off like an idiot trying to find her? There's a million places she could've gone…Besides, do you really think she wants to be found?" He turned his eyes to the floor, the heaviness of his heart weighing in once again, "We're better off without her…" he lied.

"No we aren't! We both liked her a lot and you know it Seto!" He reached into his pocket and pulled out a small box, throwing it at his brother, "And I'm sick of your moping around here like you don't care! I know you have feelings big brother; you're only human like the rest of us!" He pulled out another little box and set it down on the coffee table several feet away, "I challenge you to a duel, Seto! If I win, you have to find Miss Vitani!"

Seto picked up the box in his lap and opened it. _My dueling deck…I haven't looked at this thing since __Egypt… _ He smiled slightly, "You know you can't beat me, Mokuba," he said, waving a hand dismissively.

"Believe what you want to, Seto," Mokuba said, removing his deck as well and shuffling it quickly, "But I've been practicing."

"Fine…" Seto said, sliding his deck out of its box and crossing over to the table, sitting down on the floor opposite his brother. _Anything to get my mind off of her… _He drew his opening five cards (Blue-Eyes White Dragon, White Dragon Ritual, Dragon's Rage, Vorse Raider, Virus Cannon, Giant Orc) and said, "You can go first."

"Battle City Rules, right?"

Kaiba nodded. _Mokuba can't possibly believe he can beat me, can he? He's never been much of a duelist, really._

"Good," Mokuba placed his deck down on the finely polished, low set table and drew his six cards (Messenger of Peace, Servant of Catabolism, Drop Off, Adhesion Trap Hole, Terraforming, Destroyer Golem). He placed several of his cards down on the table, "I play these two cards face-down (Adhesion Trap Hole/ Drop Off) and summon Destroyer Golem in attack mode (1500/1000)!"

Kaiba raised an eyebrow. "You start with a monster that common? This duel'll be over all too quickly." He drew his first card (Ceasefire). "I'll –"

"Hold on, Seto!" Mokuba raised a hand to stop his big brother from playing cards, "I activate my trap card: Drop Off!" he flipped up the shiny, purple card of a hand releasing its grip on a sword, "This card makes you automatically send whatever card you drew to the card graveyard!"

Kaiba set the card in front of his deck, the first in his graveyard, frowning. That was something he hadn't been expecting. Maybe this would be more interesting than he'd first thought. "Nice move," he said, pulling on of his cards out of his hand, "Now I'll play Vorse Raider (1900/1200) in attack mode."

"Not dueling in six months must have taken a toll, Seto," Mokuba told his brother matter-of-factly, "You've set off my other trap: The Adhesion Trap Hole!" On this card was a picture of a monster dissolving in a deep pool of acid, "It reduces the attack power of one of your monsters in half, when you summon it to the field. That'll reduce your monster's power down to just 950 attack points." Mokuba sent his second trap to his graveyard, leaving just his monster card in front of him.

Kaiba was speechless for a moment, then smirked. "Not bad…you might actually make this a real challenge. Your move."

"Thanks," he pulled the top card off of his slippery deck (Shift), "I'll set one card face-down (Shift) and summon Servant of Catabolism in attack mode (700/500)!" Mokuba put another card down next to his first monster, then pointed at Kaiba's Vorse Raider, "Now my Destroyer Golem will attack your Vorse Raider, which let's my Servant of Catabolism attack directly!" 

Seto moved his monster into the graveyard and did some quick mental calculations, then pulled out a pen from one of his many pockets and wrote several numbers on the piece of paper Mokuba had set up for the game. His fine manuscript seemed out of place under Mokuba's jerky, angled words spelling out "Seto" and "Moki". Seto: 2750 – Mokuba: 4000.

"Finished?" he asked. Mokuba nodded, and Seto slipped the next card off of his deck (Luster Dragon #2), "I'll set these cards face-down (Dragon's Rage/Virus Cannon) and summon Luster Dragon #2 (1900/1600) in attack mode! And then I'll use him to attack your pathetic Servant!"

"I'll use my trap card, Shift, to make your monster attack Destroyer Golem instead, so I'll only lose 400 life points." Mokuba placed both of his used cards in the graveyard and Seto merely inclined his head quickly, to acknowledge the change in his battle step. Seto: 2750 – Mokuba: 3600.

"Let's see here… draw one card to start," the littler Kaiba said, thinking out loud (Monster Reborn) _Maybe that'll help later…_ "I'll play Terraforming, to search my deck for a field magic card and place it in my hand."

"Not quite, little brother," Kaiba said, flipping up one of his face-down cards, "I'll activate Virus Cannon, which allows me to remove ten magic cards from your deck." Seto searched his brother's deck, eyes widening ever so slightly now and again as he saw some of the cards his brother had acquired. At last he finished and placed Mokuba's considerably thinner deck back down in its place, "That should do. And I've removed all three of your field cards, so Terraforming is now a wasted card."

"Not a big loss," Mokuba shrugged, "Though I'm not thrilled about losing those other magic cards." 

"Yeah, not having 'Raigeki' or 'Dark Hole' could hurt just about any duelist," Seto said casually, "Where in the world did you get cards like that?"

"What do you think I do when I stay home 'sick' from school?" Mokuba asked, "You were the one who gave me my own credit card, remember?"

'You really are a 'Kaiba', aren't you?" Seto asked him, a grin spreading on his face.

"You could say that," Mokuba said, scanning his hand, "I'll just play my magic card Messenger of Peace from my hand, and attack your life points directly with Servant of Catabolism."

"What? How? My Luster Dragon #2 still on the field," Kaiba protested.

"So?" Mokuba said, "Servant of Catabolism is an effect monster that can pass by any defenses. I would've thought you'd know that." Kaiba growled softly and record the score change. Seto: 2050 – Mokuba: 3600

"Don't get cocky Mokuba, this duel isn't over," Seto Kaiba pulled out his next card (Pot of Greed), "I'll just use this card to draw two more into my hand," he put the magic card on top of his growing pile of discarded cards and picked up two extra cards (Paladin of White Dragon/ Breaker the Magical Warrior), "Good! I'll now summon my Breaker the Magical Warrior (1600/1000) in attack mode!" The card he placed down showed a figure similar to Yugi's trusted Dark Magician, but the jagged outfit the figure wore was blood red and lined with gold, and he held a gleaming sword and shield.

"What is that?" Mokuba asked, his eyes widened with interest.

"He's a slightly-better than average monster, but it's his special effect that I'm interested in. Once per turn, he allows me to destroy one magic or trap card on my opponent's side of the field. I choose to eliminate your Messenger of Peace, allowing my monsters to attack you freely." Mokuba sighed and sent his Servant of Catabolism to the graveyard. His life points had just taken a major dip: Seto: 2050 – Mokuba: 800.

"Better make this move count, right Seto?" Mokuba asked his big brother cheerfully. He hadn't forgotten the conditions he had set on this duel. If he didn't defeat his big brother, then they might never see Miss Vitani ever again. Seto would spend the rest of his days miserable. NO! He couldn't let that happen. Mokuba pulled the next card off of the top of his deck (4-Starred Ladybug of Doom), "I'll set one monster in defense mode (4-Starred Ladybug of Doom (800/1200)) and play monster Reborn to revive your Vorse Raider (1900/1600) in attack mode! Now I can destroy your Breaker the Magical Warrior and damage your life points!" Seto: 1750 – Mokuba: 800.

Seto drew his card (Sword of Deep-Seated) and smiled. All he had to do was sacrifice his Luster Dragon #2 by using the White Dragon Ritual to ritual summon his Paladin of White Dragon. Then he could equip it with this power-up to raise its attack power by 500. After that, the Dragon's Rage trap card would allow him to do damage to defensive monsters and this duel would be over. 

And he would never see that smile again.

He froze as Vitani's face entered his mind once more. Is that what he wanted…? _I've done without it for so long…is this what…love is supposed to feel like…? _ He drew his hand together and set them all in a pile face-down on the table and put his right hand over his deck. 

"What?!?!" Mokuba shouted, surprising himself at his sheer volume, "You're giving up?!?!"

"I don't have the cards I need in my hand to beat you, or even stall you," Kaiba shrugged, getting to his feet, "Bad luck, I guess." He turned and headed towards the door, "Suppose I'll go look for Vitani…though there's no way in hell to know where to start…" he grumbled.

Mokuba watched his brother leave for a moment, then turned back to the abandoned duel. He reached over and picked up his brother's old hand. Shocked, he flipped up Seto's unused trap card, "He could have won…" Mokuba said out loud to himself, "He had all the cards he needed to win right here." Without so much as a second thought, Mokuba sprung up from his spot on the floor and tore down the hall. 

Seto never had a chance. Mokuba caught up to his big brother in about five seconds flat and squeezed his brother around the middle from behind, "Thank you Seto! Thank you so much!"

"What are you talking about?" Kaiba said, trying to act annoyed, but unable to hide the small smile tugging at his lips.

"I knew you liked her! I just knew it!" Mokuba cried, not responding to Seto's question. He was also sure that his big brother already knew what he was talking about.

Kaiba felt his face grow hot and turned away. "I'm not saying I like her Mokuba…" he said, "I…I don't know how I feel about her yet…but I know I need her to be here in order to figure it out."

"It's ok if you haven't figured it out yet, Seto," Mokuba told him, letting go and smiling brightly, "I already have. You're just a little slow, that's all." Without another word, he turned and headed off, "'Night, Seto!"

"Wha –? Wait!" reaching out in his younger brother's direction, but the boy had already disappeared. _What does he know that I don't?? _he wondered, frustrated, _ This would be so much simpler if he'd just explain it…_

* * *

_This is worse than being in Noah's virtual world. At least that was interesting to look at…_ Tristan Taylor thought to himself. He had no idea how long he had been wandering around in the blackness of the Shadow Realm, but it was quite apparent that no matter how far or in what direction he went, there would be absolutely nothing. Joey had told him the Shadow Realm was like a prison, damp and moist with hard, stone walls on every side and torches of blue fire. So Tristan had decided that either it could take on different forms at will, or Joey was just nuts. And he was leaning towards the latter of the two choices.

He stopped for a moment, not really for any other reason other than the fact that he was sick of wandering aimlessly, but the sound of footsteps in the darkness continued. "What the hell…?" he muttered, glancing around, "There can't really be anyone else here can there…?" The sound grew closer until a figure became visible in the distance, and Tristan felt his stomach give a funny jolt as he realized who it was. "Tea!" he cried, breaking into a run.

The brown-haired girl looked up at the sound of his voice, "Omigod! Tristan – is it really you??" she also began running and met him halfway, where he caught her up in his arms. "I thought I'd never see you again," she whispered and he felt her breath on his bare chest.

"What happened? I blacked out and when I woke up I was here. Is this really… you know…" Tristan asked her worriedly.

"I think so…" she said, still not letting him go, "It's hard to tell…the Shadow Realm seems to change each time we see it…but it still feels the same." Silence fell and she realized the skin under her hands was still burned, "Oh…you're hurt…" she said, releasing him slightly, realizing she must've been making it worse.

"Hey, it's no big deal," He lied, smiling at her, "I've had worse, after all."

She smiled weakly, "I'm…I'm glad we found each other…You have no idea how happy I am to see you."

"Yeah, this place could really drive a person off the edge if you know what I mean," Tristan nodded in agreement, "Sorry I made you worry back there in the museum. I just could stand by and watch him attack you like that."

"I never realized I meant that much to you…" she said, putting a hand on his arm.

"Eh?" Tristan started, getting very red, "Well, um… what I meant was… er, just that… I would have done it for any of my friends, ya know?"

"Oh…right…" Tea said, looking severely disappointed. She pulled away from him and sat down a few feet away, "Guess there's nothing else to do but wait for someone to realize we're missing…wandering around here will get us nowhere."

"Um…yeah…" he said, settling down as well, putting his chin in his hands. _'Smooth, _ _Taylor…very smooth…'_


	10. Chapter 10 Outside Control: Vitani’s Spi...

A note from Invader Shaun: Hello everyone. First off, I would like to thank everyone for their continuing support of our story and your wonderful reviews. Many people have addressed the issue of Breaker the Magical Warrior's magic counter effect. For simplicities sake, I gave Breaker's magic counter ability more leverage so it could be more easily explained to those reviewers that might not be avid players of the Yu-Gi-Oh card game. Since Breaker was only on the field for one turn, his effect was not abused. I do realize that the actual card states the attack power bonus and the single counter upon it, but I have rarely seen anyone that would rather have the extra 300 attack power when this monster is summoned over destroying a face-down magic or trap card. Thus, that little effect usually gets lost as the one player weeps at having their Mirror Force destroyed (speaking from personal experience). Please enjoy this latest chapter.

* * *

Chapter 10

"Outside Control: Vitani's Spiral"

_Athena was sitting on a grass-covered hill, picking wild flowers and tying them together. She'd loved doing this as a child… _'Wait…'_ She looked down at her hands, which were smaller than then should be. She felt her chest… completely flat. There was laughter behind her and she turned. Vitani, who looked to be no older than seven, was running towards her, holding a blue ball with both hands and smiling widely. _'I remember this time in our lives…'_ Athena thought, grinning and waving at her sister, _'We were so happy…' 

_"I got the ball!" Vitani said, kneeling down beside her sister, "Nick stuck it up in a tree, but Diana got it down."_

_ "Now we can play again!" Athena heard herself say. "I made this for you," she added, holding out the flower wreath._

_ "Thank you…" Vitani said admiringly, placing the crown on her blonde head, "It's so pretty…"_

_ "You look pretty with it on," Athena assured her._

_ Vitani giggled and then scrambled to her feet and ran a few yards away, "Here, catch!"_

_ "Okay!" Athena jumped to her feet, holding her arms out, "I'm ready!"_

_ Vitani threw the ball, but before it could reach her a strong wind caught it and blew it away. Both girls watched it fall back down the hill. "Aww, man…" Athena sighed._

_ "I'll go get it again," Vitani volunteered, but before she'd reached the curve of the hill, a figure rose up in front of them, climbing up the side of the hill. He was tall and dark, with green eyes and white robes. In his hands he held a black ball._

_ "Did you girls lose this?" he asked, holding it up._

_ "Yes!" Vitani said, "Thank you!" She reached for it, but Athena grabbed her and held her back._

_ "No…" the Greek girl said, "Our ball was blue."_

_ "Oh but this one's much better," the man said, "I promise it'll never blow away like that other one."_

_ "That'd be great!" Vitani said, pulling out of Athena's grip and hurrying towards the man again, "I'm tired of chasing after it all the time."_

_ The man smiled and handed her the ball. She nearly fell over with the weight, "Wow…" she panted, "It's really heavy."_

_ "Don't worry," he said, "You'll get used to it."_

_ Vitani turned back to Athena, "Lookit!" she said. _

_ At that moment, two blood red eyes snapped open on the ball, flashing fiercely. "TANI LOOKOUT!!" Athena cried, running forward, as the sky above her darkened and the grass died on the spot._

_ Vitani looked down at the ball, and let out a shriek as the ball flew out of her hands, growing immensely, before turning on her and, opening a mouth full of razor sharp teeth, closed down on the little girl, swallowing her whole and then exploding in a violent cloud of fire and smoke._

_ Athena was knocked off her feet by the blast. "NO!!" she cried as the smoke cleared and only the smoldering flower-wreath was left in the spot where Vitani had been. "Vitani!! Come back!!_

_ The man in the white robes turned and headed back down the hill, calling back, in a voice all too familiar, "Your sister is mine…and will be until it destroys her…"_

_ Athena was left alone on the dead hill, wind swirling around her and lightning flashing across the dark sky._

* * *

"**_Vitani!!_**" Athena shot up in bed, panting, clutching her cotton sheets, nightshirt drenched in cold sweat. For a long moment she just sat there, hands hiding her face, trying to catch her breath. _'It was…so real…' _she thought, shuddering. _ 'She needs me.'_

With determination in her icy blue eyes, she threw the sheets off, not even noticing the cool winter night air on her bare legs, and crossed her room. As she was stuffing her duffle bag with clothes, she heard a feminine voice come from her doorway. "Thena…what are you doing?" She glanced up. Her older sister Diana was leaning against the doorframe, her long black hair tied loosely at the nape of her neck, shaded rings under her blue eyes.

"I'm going to Japan," Athena said, turning back to her packing.

"What for?" came a second, this time masculine voice. Her younger brother nick had stumbled across the hall as well, rubbing his eyes and tugging at the drawstrings of his pajama pants. "And what was with the screaming? You have a bad dream or something?"

"It wasn't a nightmare – it was a vision," Athena snapped, zipping up her bag. She pulled her traveling clothes out from a trunk under her bed and Diana shoved Nick outside, shutting the door in front of him. 

This seemed to faze none of them, as Athena began pulling off her nightshirt and Nick continued his questions. "A vision? What of?"

"Vitani," Athena said, gracefully stepping into her pants and latching her belt, "She's in trouble."

"What exactly did you see?" Diana asked calmly, brushing a few strands of loose hair out of her face.

"Jetsu still has a hold on her," Athena answered indirectly. Reliving the dream again was something she did not wish to rush into. "I don't know how he's doing it, but he's going to destroy her."

"What're you gonna do about it?" Nick asked from the hallway.

"I don't know yet…" Athena admitted, "But I can't just sit here and let it happen."

Diana nodded, "I see…And you're positive she switched sides?"

"Yes!" Athena exclaimed, pulling her cloak over her head, "I've been telling you that for the past six months! The only reason she didn't come home with me was because she knew you'd all act like this!"

"I never said –" Diana started, looking indignant.

"But that doesn't mean you haven't thought it," Athena said shortly, "I'm leaving – whether you like it or not. I haven't abandoned her yet."

She pushed past her sister and stormed out into the hallway, causing Nick (who had been leaning against the door) to be thrown down on the floor on his back, the door no longer supporting his weight. After she had rounded the nearest corner out of sight, Diana leaned down over her baby brother curiously.

He moaned, rubbing the back of his head. "What now?"

* * *

Bakura tossed his backpack on the floor as he got home from school Tuesday afternoon. Still no sign of Tristan or Tea, and they were all starting to get a little worried. He slid into his chair in front of his computer to check his e-mail. Maybe one of them would have sent something. The familiar ding of a new message brought more surprise than relief from worry. "It's from Athena…" he said to himself, double clicking on the title.

"Bakura-chan,

I hate to bother you but I have a really big favor to ask. I'll be coming to Japan soon on business and was wondering if you could possibly provide me with a place to stay. I don't want to be a burden or anything, but my savings are running sort of low, so I was thinking maybe I could stay with you. If this would be a problem, I'd understand completely. Let me know either way. I'm catching the red-eye flight tonight. See you soon!

Love, 

Athena"

"Well, aren't you going to write back, Bakura-chan?" Barak asked snidely, appearing behind his host and leaning over his shoulder to look at the e-mail.

Bakura felt his cheeks grow hot. "What am I suppose to do?"

"Tell her of course it's alright if she comes, but to be gentle because you're still quite inexperienced," Barak stated plainly, straightening up and looking down at the boy.

The blush strengthened tremendously on the teen's face and he swallowed hard, "I…I don't think that's what she had in mind…" he said meekly, clicking on the reply button.

Barak snorted and disappeared again, leaving Bakura alone with his thoughts.

* * *

"It says Tea's line has been disconnected," Yugi said, hanging up the cordless in the kitchen.

"Hmmm…" Yami said, tapping his chin thoughtfully, "This is starting to worry me…"

Yugi nodded, climbing up onto a stool in front of the counter next to his counterpart. "I'd really like to think that they've just run off together, but knowing both of them, that's not likely."

"I just don't understand it…" the Pharaoh said, slamming his hand down on the counter, "What on earth could've happened??"

"The last time I talked to Tea was on Friday, when I asked her if she had any plans for the weekend," Yugi spoke up thoughtfully, thinking hard to remember more, "She had said that Tristan had sent her an e-mail asking her to meet him in the park. I wonder if that had anything to do with it…"

"It sounds like a perfect place for foul play," Yami nodded, "But… who?"

"That's what I can't figure out…" Yugi sighed.

* * *

**'_It would seem this place has been through several changes since my last visit…_'** Jetsu mused, looking at the "Under new Management" sign posted on the door of the Domino Museum. The trip from Egypt back to Japan was uneventful, but marked his longest possession of this body. He hadn't quite mastered his control of Vitani, so his magical reserves were getting low, but no matter. Soon Vitani would be gone and only he would remain.

He smiled as he smashed one of the two double doors in with the Millennium Rod. It was crude, but the only way to get to her. It had been a calculated risk, but his hunch that Seline had expanded her area of operations in his absence had paid off. The fact that this trip brought him into the heart of the Pharaoh's current dwelling was of little concern. The ruler of Egypt may have gotten lucky once, but that was going to change.

Jetsu began to slowly walk down the large, center hallway of the main floor, the red Egyptian Eye lighting his way. If Seline had intended to attempt to impede his progress, here would be the time and the place.

* * *

"It can't be…" Seline muttered.

"What is it, Mistress?" Basil asked, coming up beside her high-backed chair. 

"Take a look at who's been breaking-and-entering," she said, gesturing towards the security screens. A clear image of Vitani's body striding through the main corridor was filling every screen, each one showing a slightly different angle. The red eye on her forehead was clearly visible.

"Who is it?" Shem asked, looking up from behind a desk.

"The former servant of Lord Jetsu Maeda," Chalie answered, buried in his own paperwork.

"Or so it would seem…" Seline said, pointing at the screen which clearly showed the eye, "Yet something tells me she's not alone…or even herself. This might get dangerous…depending on how we play our cards."

"Shall I go take care of him?" Basil asked, tensed.

"No…that would be what he'd expect," she said, "And I don't want anyone getting hurt," she added, touching his muscular arm lightly, "Just go welcome him and escort him up here, where we can talk."

"Yes, Ma'am," Basil bowed and strode off.

* * *

Jetsu finished climbing the stairs to the second floor, **_'She's afraid. Not without reason…'_** he hadn't traversed more than another step when a new figure became visible. It was a tall, brawny man holding what looked curiously like a Millennium Item. Maeda smiled and kept walking, coming closer and closer to the stranger.

Basil was shaken slightly by the woman's seeming lack of worry as they drew ever nearer to a head-on collision. _'Mistress always said Maeda was our one true threat…' _he reminded himself, _'Best make sure it's actually him.'_ As the figure drew closer he spoke out clearly, "Are you Jetsu Maeda?"

Jetsu stopped inches form the other, Vitani's body a full head shorter than the male's, **_ "I am, but I have no business with you. I suggest removing yourself from my path before I am forced to do so myself."_**

"My Mistress has instructed me to bring you to her," Basil said, standing tall, "I trust you have business with her?"

**_"Lead the way." _**Maeda said, staring up at the man's nervous face.

Basil turned swiftly and headed back the way he had come.

* * *

"Maeda…what a surprise to see you still among us mere mortals," Seline said, spinning her chair around as Basil lead the woman's body through the door.

**_"Were you under the impression that I had ever left?"_** he asked, stopping in front of Seline's desk and looking down at her with distain.

"I must admit after that mess in Egypt it had crossed my mind," she said calmly, pulling a bottle of wine and two glasses out of a deep drawer in her desk, "Care to join me?" she asked, as she filled the glasses.

**_"No,"_** he replied bluntly, not moving from his spot, **_"You've been busy in these past six months, haven't you?"_**

"I've always been busy," she said, standing up and crossing over to where Shem was sitting and setting the second glass down in front of him. "Have you been keeping close watch on me while the world thought you'd vanished?" she asked coming back to her own desk and picking up her glass.

**_"It was a real nuisance, this girl's mental barrier. Watching was the only thing I could do until recently,"_** He stopped in mid-thought, and closed his eyes briefly, **_"What is that presence I'm sensing? It couldn't be… my old Shield!"_** he grinned evilly, the expression very unnatural on Vitani's face, **_"How has it been working for you?"_**

"You know damn well how it's been 'working'," Seline said hotly, as a nerve had been struck, "But I see you've claimed a new Item for yourself," she gestured at the Rod still clutched in his hand, "What's this one for?"

**_"A gift. Vitani hopes to present it to Seto Kaiba. My Item is here,"_** Jetsu patted the sheath at his side, where the Millennium Sword resided, **_"And I have it plus a complex bit of Egyptian magic to thank for my continued existence."_**

"I see…" Seline nodded, "And do you plan to allow Seto Kaiba to claim the Rod?"

**_"It won't matter whether or not he has it in the long run,"_** Jetsu said uncaringly, **_"But enough of this banter. I assume you realize that this isn't a social call."_**

****"Yes, you never come just to talk anymore," she said, voice thick with mock disappointment, "What is it you want?"

**_"This body is dying off of its own guilt. As much as I know how it would disappoint you if I were to experience death a second time, I need a permanent form of my own. For that, I need you."_** Each word seemed to be dragged out of Maeda with a mixed amount of distain and restraint, as it pained him to request the help of a rival.

"Really…?" she said, "Intriguing…what exactly did you have in mind? And what's in it for me…?"

**_"You use your time and research to create me a new being and in return…"_** Jetsu took a deep breath and then let out the next words slowly, **_"I will satisfy your greed by unsealing the Shield."_**

Seline's purple eyes gleamed. "Unseal the Shield…?" she echoed, "But how do I know that once you have a body of your own again, that you won't come after it?"

**_"Stay on my good side and you should have no cause to worry about such things. If you would like,"_** Jetsu told her calmly, drawing out the Millennium Sword, "**_I could end any concerns you have and end your life right now."_**

Basil twitched rather impulsively, but Chalie put up a hand to keep him still. The last thing they needed was the muscle-bound thug to do anything reckless. They had to trust Seline could talk her way out of this.

Seline herself was eyeing the Sword warily, apparently trying to work over her words carefully. Before she could speak however, Shem stood up. "If you destroy her, then there will be no one with the dark magic required who is willing to create you a new form," he said.

Jetsu's eyes narrowed dangerously as he faced the young man, **_"I am in no mood to listen to you, Shem. You were stupid enough to challenge my ancestor, let's not make history repeat itself. Sit down, boy." _**Maeda put the Sword away reluctantly and looked down at Seline, **_"What will it take for me to convince you?"_**

Shem cast a puzzled glance at Seline, but she was busy considering Jetsu's last words. After a brief moment, she crossed to Shem's desk, where the wine glass sat, still full. She held it out to Maeda, "Drink," she said, "If you trust me enough to do this…I'll trust your word – and you'll have a deal."

Jetsu reached forward and took the glass, staring into it with little concern, **_"Deal." _**With that, he drank the entire glass in a single sip and handed the empty goblet back to Seline, gaze never leaving her.

"We're agreed then," she said, setting the glass aside, "When I've held up my end of the bargain, how will I contact you? Or will you be checking up on me?"

**_"You could always just pay a visit to Kaiba Corporation or the Kaiba household," _ **He said, smirking,**_ "To conserve energy, I will be allowing my former servant control of this body again, but anytime you need to speak to me I will be… available."_** Jetsu Maeda turned and left the room, not looking as he past by Chalie and Basil. The darkness of the hallway outside enveloped him and he disappeared from view.

Once he was gone, Seline exhaled slowly, wiping her brow with the back of her hand. "Well…that was fun, wasn't it?" she said mildly. She glanced at the clock on her desk. "I suggest you boys get to bed…we've got plenty to keep us busy tomorrow…no need to try and get started now."

'Wait!" Shem said, holding up a hand and getting to his feet quickly, "What did he mean back there? He seemed to know a lot about me…"

"Yes…Jetsu knows plenty," Seline said, "Once the magic of the Shield is released, perhaps even more of your past will be revealed." She leaned close to him, brushing the tips of her fingers along his face, "It looks like your purpose has become much clearer, doesn't it?"

Shem drew back, disgusted at the lack of information still presented before him, "My host is tired. He needs rest." He stormed off towards the teen's room, content to let his host sleep so he could brood.

Seline frowned. She picked up her glass and refilled it, "Well…I'm going to retire for the evening. Either of you boys care to join me?"

"I'll have to decline," Chalie said, standing up and walking away, "It would appear that I have extra work to do now…"

As Basil came up and put an arm around her, Seline couldn't help but watch as Chalie left the room.


	11. Chapter 11 Complications

Chapter 11

"Complications"

Vitani woke up in the middle of the street, feeling light-headed and freezing. The cold wetness on her face told her it had started to snow before her eyes had adjusted to the street-lamp lit night. She shivered, and then noticed the Millennium Rod clutched in her right hand. _'No…' _she thought, _'What the hell is happening…?? I was in __ Egypt…where am I now?!" _As she stumbled onward, she began to recognize the surroundings. _'I'm…I'm back in __Japan…but how did I get here?! What have I done? I can't go back to Kaiba like this…besides, I'm sure he's forgotten about me by now already…I don't even know how long I've been gone…'_

She stopped at the nearest lamp-post, clutching at it for support as a wave of dizziness swept over her. _'What's wrong with me…?' _The answer was in her mind before she even realized it. _ 'It's him…he's doing this, I know it…' _She felt for the Sword and drew it out of its sheath. "Jestu…" she said his name for the first time in six months, "Why won't you just stay in hell?!?!" Anger, confusion and fear overpowered her better judgment and she lashed out at the pole, slicing it clean in two without meaning it.

There was a resounding crunch and a muffled curse. Vitani froze in horror as Seto Kaiba stepped out of his now broken limousine, the driver also stepping out (looking severely shaken).

The boy billionaire looked over at his personal assistant, surprised. He had been on his way over to his office to meet again with those he had put on the case of finding Vitani, but having her cut down a lamp post to get his attention worked as well. At least she wasn't lost anymore, "Vitani!" he called, taking several strides forward, "Where the hell have you been? I-… er, that is, Mokuba's been so worried about you!"

Vitani felt the Sword fall out of her hands, landing in the thin layer of snow that was now covering the sidewalk. "I…I…" she stammered, wondering how she could possibly answer. She had wanted to see him so badly, but not like this. Out of ideas, and with no way to explain her self without sounding insane, she strode over to him, thrusting the Rod at his chest forcefully, "Here."

Kaiba started, but didn't back away. He had seen this Item before, but it had been taken away. It was the Millennium Rod, "Where did you get this?"

"In Cairo," she said.

"When? Yesterday?"

"I don't know…what day is today?" She knew this sounded ridiculous, but she truly had no idea how long she'd been gone.

"Tuesday," he replied, eyeing her suspiciously.

"Then yes…yesterday night," she said, "I stole it."

"Why?" he asked incredulously, wondering why he insisted on this ridiculous banter.

"Because it's what you wanted," she said, regretting the sound of her own voice cracking slightly.

"What I wanted was to know where you were. Why you up and decided to leave without a word." Kaiba told her firmly, not quite catching on to what she was trying to tell him.

Vitani felt her stomach twist uncomfortably, as she found herself unable to break the lock he had between their eyes. "No…you've wanted that magic for the past six-months…it's been making you miserable, and I couldn't stand it anymore. So I found this for you…We both know it's the only Item you'll ever be able to wield."

"I do want the magic… but not at the expense of those close to me," he chuckled slightly, "Mokuba showed me where my priorities should have been all along."

"…Close to you…?" she echoed, a strange bubbling sensation rising up from her stomach to her throat, "What are you saying…?"

"I'm saying that I…well…" he began, feeling his words catch in his throat and tugging at the collar of his shirt, "It's just that…since you've started working here…I've started to realize…things…about myself. Things I probably never really wanted to find out…"

"Seto…" she said, feeling the color rising in her cheeks, "Are you saying…what I think you're saying?"

"Well…" he said, turning his eyes to the ground, "If you're thinking that I just might…care about you, than you'd be right…" He looked back up at her, but his small smile faded quickly as he saw tears streaming down her face. "What is it…?" he asked, as panic took a firm death-grip on his insides. _'Oh no…don't tell me I'm about to face rejection…' _he thought, horrified.

Vitani was trembling, failing miserably at willing her tears to stop. "I-I've wanted you to say that for…so long," she said, her breath catching in her throat and coming out as a hiccough, "But you can't care about me, Kaiba…I'll just end up hurting you…"

"What are you talking about?" he asked, reaching for her arm, but she pulled away.

"No!" she cried, "I promised myself I wouldn't fall in love with you…" His eyes widened at these words, but she continued, not seeming to notice. "You don't understand how grateful I am to you…for trusting me…but you shouldn't have. He's not gone, Kaiba. I'm not free of him."

"Who?" 

"_Him_…" she said, staring daggers at the Sword on the ground beside her, "He's…he's still here…I think he's inside me…"

"Vitani…" Kaiba said, trying to reach out to her again, "You're delusional…let me get you back home…"

"You don't get it!!" she lashed out suddenly, "I can't be here anymore! The longer I stay, the more your lives are in danger! He'll end up destroying us all if I don't leave!" With this finally out of her system, she turned and broke into a run down the street, muffled sobs slowly being drowned out by the wind.

Kaiba didn't even think; he just bolted after her. She was fast, but her crying seemed to be slowing her down and she hadn't made it farther than the next intersection when he caught her by one arm and held fast against her struggling.

"Stop it! Let me go!" she cried, rounding on him and pounding his chest with her free hand, "I'll hurt you if I stay!"

He released her, only to clasp her face in both hands and force her to look him in the eyes. "If you leave…you'll hurt me more than you _ever_ could by staying…" he said quietly, as her tears ran across his fingers, "I love you, Vitani…let me help you…"

At this she lost all strength in her legs and clung to him desperately, burring her face in the folds of his coat. "I'm sorry…" she wept, "I love you, too…"

He wrapped his arms around her tightly, feeling warmth swell up inside him, despite the wind whipping around them both, as a great gaping hole within him was filled. '_So this is that love that everyone keeps talking about…' _he thought mildly, enjoying the feel of her against him, _'Heh…it's almost as good as all the hype…I could get used to this…'_

* * *

_Who would have the gall to come visiting at this hour?_ Barak thought testily as he stood up and walked across the room to answer the door, leaving the sleeping spirit of Bakura back on the bed. He yanked the door open swiftly, only to have some shadowed figure throw themselves at him in an over-eager hug. 

"Bakura-chan!" came a female voice whispered excitedly in his ear, "It's so good to see you!"

Barak did not return the friendly gesture and simply pushed her away from him, trying to get a clear view as to who his assailant was.

As her figure slowly came into focus, another figure pushed his way between them, grabbing hold of the collar of the flannel, button-down pajamas Barak was forced to wear because of Bakura's intolerance for the cold. "Let's get one thing straight," the new figure said, "You better watch yourself around my sister, got it??"

Barak slapped the hand away and reared his fist back. He let loose and connected solidly with the man's cheek, knocking him to the ground. The yami spirit turned to the female, whom he could now identify as Bakura's friend Athena, "My host is asleep right now. If you and yours wish to stay here, I'd advise you to not to cause any more ruckus." He moved out of the doorway and went back over to Bakura's bed, sitting down at the end and watching the visitors carefully.

The third figure, who was also female, leaned down to help the man to his feet. "You idiot…" she muttered.

"What?" the young man half-shouted, half-whispered, "Athena – why didn't you tell me he had a yami?"

"I did," Athena hissed, "On the plane. You just weren't listening." She dropped her bag on the floor and sank onto the couch, joined quickly by the slightly taller woman.

"I was asleep on the plane!" the young man protested, flinging himself angrily into a chair across from the women.

"That's not my fault," Athena said.

"All right, enough!" said the second woman said, "This is getting us nowhere, and we're all too tired to think straight anyway – so let's just drop it, okay? Go back to sleep, Nick."

Within an hour, all three of the siblings had fallen asleep. It was then, and only then, that Barak finally relinquished the body back to his sleeping host. 

* * *

"Ow, ow, ow ow…"

"Oh, stop being such a baby. He couldn't have hit you that hard!"

"Look at this mark!"

"It's your own fault, after all."

"You were the one that hugged him!"

"That didn't mean you had to go all over-protective and try to threaten the Spirit of the Ring!"

"I didn't know it was the spirit! I didn't know he had a spirit!"

"Why can't you two ever shut up!?!? Its 7:00, give it a rest for a few more hours at least…"

Bakura wasn't sure as to why there was a conversation going on in his room, but one of those voices sounded awfully familiar. He sat up quickly and looked around, spotting the three bickering beings. He rubbed his eyes, unable to believe the information they were transmitting to him, "Athena?"

The younger woman turned, and her blue eyes lit up as she clambered over the back of the couch and ran to embrace him. "Bakura-chan!" she said happily, "I've missed you!"

He accepted her hug, but they broke off soon enough, "I didn't expect you so soon! Who're… um, your friends?" he asked nervously, looking from the calm, older woman to the surly, young man with a bad bruise on one cheek.

"Oh! Right – I didn't mention them to you in that text-message I sent," Athena said, slapping herself lightly on the forehead, "I didn't realize they'd be coming, at the time. Bakura, I'd like you to meet Diana, by older sister, and Nick, my baby brother," she said, gesturing at the pair still seated in the living-room section of the apartment.

"Hello!" he said cheerfully, smiling at the two, hoping that they would stop staring at the two of them like that.

"Good to finally meet you, Ryou," Diana said, inclining her head towards him, "Athena's told us plenty about you."

"I'm sure she has, although I don't know if any of it would have been interesting," eager to move the subject away from him, he turned to Athena, who was now sitting next to him on the bed, "When did you get here? I didn't hear anything last night."

"Well…we had a little run in with Barak," Athena admitted, jerking a thumb in her brother's direction, "I don't remember exactly what time it was when we got in."

"Oh dear," Bakura said, "I hope he didn't give you too much trouble."

"Well…Nick was really the one who started it," Athena said.

"Did not!" Nick protested as Diana hid her smile with her hand.

"Don't you have somewhere to be?" came a harsh voice from behind Bakura. He didn't even have to look to know that Barak had just appeared out of nowhere.

"Do I?"

"How about school?"

Bakura fell out of the bed in surprise, "I completely forgot!" He began to rush around the room like a madman and in less than five minutes, was dressed and ready to go.

"How did he do that…?" Nick whispered to Diana.

"Foreigners are very high strung…" she observed, not really answering his question.

"Will you three be all right here until I get back?" Bakura asked, slightly out of breath.

"We'll be fine," Athena assured him, "We'll just get settled in…then maybe do some sightseeing – we've never been to Japan before, actually." She stood up and ushered him to the door, "And maybe tonight you can give me a real tour, hmm?" she suggested, giving his hand an affectionate squeeze.

Bakura went very red and put one hand behind his head, "If you have time, perhaps… But, I really must be going now. I'm sure there's food around here if any of you get hungry. Bye!" With that he grabbed the Millennium Ring off of his nightstand and tied its string around his neck. At last he left, the door slamming in his wake. 

"Sightseeing…?" Nick said skeptically.

Athena shrugged guiltily, "Okay – investigating…disguised as sightseeing."

"Why did you not tell him the real reason we've come?" Diana asked solemnly.

"I don't want to worry him yet," Athena said, sitting back down beside her sister, "If his yami found out what we were up to, he would want to be involved…and I don't want Bakura getting hurt because of me anymore."


	12. Chapter 12 Assembling the Challenge

A Note from the Authors: We fear not the cake of fruit that is Pegasus. We had been planning to update this morning before reading your review, DBZFFQ, just so you know. Enjoy!

* * *

Chapter 12

"Assembling the Challenge"

The much anticipated ringing of the bell ended another long school day for 14-and-3/4-year-old Weevil Underwood. He fingered the mysterious pendant he had received from the Egyptian Tournament coordinator absent-mindedly as he collected his things and headed for his locker.

Hopefully Rex remembered that they had another meeting with their social worker today when they got home. It was a shame, but she had decided to keep a closer eye on them ever since they ran off to Egypt and came back after he had been hospitalized for roughly a week. Lost in his thoughts, Weevil left the school without waiting for his best friend and began his long trek back to their shared apartment (cost reasons).

Two blocks away from home, he noticed something very peculiar: the strange scarab adornment he wore was beginning to glow brightly. A chill ran through his body, as if something was warning him of impending danger. The blue-haired boy looked around, wondering if he was just being paranoid.

There was a tall, thin man with shaggy dark hair standing a few meters ahead of him, leaning against a brick wall and staring out at the traffic in the street. He was dressed in a suit and dark trench coat, which almost felt uncharacteristic, even though the insect master had never even seen the man before.

_Another gang member maybe… or could be just another shady business deal… I hate this neighborhood._ Ignoring the man, Weevil decided to walk right by him as if he just hadn't noticed him.

"Mr. Underwood, I presume?" the man said, as Weevil moved passed him.

"What of it?" Weevil asked testily. He was in no mood for these people today. 

The tall man glanced at him, turning away from the traffic for the first time, and after surveying the boy for a brief moment, sighed. "It seems my lead was incorrect…you do not posses what I seek…" he said, then his eyes widened, "But perhaps my trip has not been wasted." He pointed at the pendant around the boy's neck, "Where did you acquire that?"

Weevil eyed the man warily. He had had enough of Egypt to last a life time, and now this man wanted to know where he had gotten the pendant, "Yard sale," he lied, "Just liked the look."

The man raised an eyebrow. "It must have quite an exotic sale…" he said mildly, "To present you with an artifact that is nearly 5000 years old."

Weevil started, his eyes widening, "Look, pal, I don't want any trouble. Just leave me alone!" The fear and anger was building up within the teen male, causing the pendant to glow even more brightly. Several small, varied bugs began to gather at the insect master's feet.

"If you do not know how to control that, it is not safe for it to be in your possession," the man said, "It would be best if you handed it over to someone with more magical experience." His hands remained in the pockets of his coat, not wanting yet to seem like he wanted the pendant for himself.

Weevil took off, tearing down the sidewalk as fast as he could. Another lunatic; why couldn't they just leave him alone? First that Jetsu from Egypt and now this!

Chalie moved to follow him, but instantly, a swarm of insects massed together in his path. _ 'So…he has accessed its power without knowing how…this could become a true threat if not put to a stop here and now.' _He waved his hand at the swarm and they disbanded confusedly. Then he vanished completely…

…Only to reappear in front of the fleeing teen. "That's quite enough of this nonsense, Mr. Underwood," he said, extending his hand towards the youth.

"How did you-" the boy began, but was cut off suddenly as the man muttered something under his breath and the pendant stopped glowing, "What's going on here?" Weevil pleaded to the man, completely confused.

"Nothing you need concern yourself with. Welcome to the Gauntlet, Weevil." There was a flash of white light and the boy crumpled, unconscious. 

* * *

"I swear if he blew this off and went to the arcade without me, I'll…" Rex Raptor grumbled angrily to himself as he trudged up the stairs to his apartment 30 minutes after school let out. Someone said they saw Weevil leave at least 10 minutes before he did, so that meant the little bug could have crawled off to anywhere. It also meant that he would have to face their social worker alone, never a very pleasant experience. Her with her government orders this and that.

He was surprised to find the door to his home already wide open. _What the heck?_ Rex wondered to himself, as he cautiously entered the apartment, "Weevil? You home?"

"I'm afraid Mr. Underwood didn't make it home today," came a deep voice from the living room. Rex turned to see a tall, muscular man standing in the center of the room, on long gold staff in one hand. On the floor was the unconscious form of the social worker, bound and gagged.

"Where is he? What did you do to him?" Rex asked, firing the questions one after the other. He didn't know who this jerk was, but he probably wasn't a pushover by the looks of him. Hundreds of plans ran through his head, but each one was as feeble as the last.

"I did nothing to him," the man said, stepping forward, "He's waiting for you with my Mistress. I'm here to take you to him."

"Why should I trust you?" Rex asked, taking a step back, "You haven't exactly made a good case for yourself." The boy told the stranger truthfully, gesturing at the unconscious woman on the ground.

The man glanced down at the social worker, "Her associates will come looking for her soon, so you don't need to worry for her sake. I was just told to make sure there were no eye witnesses – I hadn't actually thought there would be anyone here when I arrived."

Rex couldn't believe his ears. Either this man was the most carefree criminal in the world or the stupidest. Right now it didn't really matter. He took off, flying down the hallway towards the stairs.

Basil frowned and raised his staff, bringing it down sharply on the floor. Out in the hallway, a ring of flames materialized around Rex, trapping the teen where he stood. "I had hoped you'd cooperate…but it seems we'll have to do things the hard way," he said, stepping out into the hall.

Raptor stood as still as possible, not sure how this could have possibly happened (or why it was happening to him!). He watched, frozen, as the man walked through the flames unharmed, and then raised a hand. 

Basil brought his hand down on the boy's neck quickly, not using enough strength to kill him, but only to knock him unconscious. As the teen fell forward, Basil caught him with one arm, and carried him off as if he weighed next to nothing.

* * *

"Aren't you worried even a little? They've been gone for five days already. Yami thinks something must have happened to them."

"Of course I'm worried… I just try not to let it get to me," Joey said as he and Yugi headed towards the Game Shop after school, "I find I do all of my best thinkin' when I'm not freakin' out. So… whadda ya think we should do? Call the cops?"

"I doubt that they'd be able to do much even if we did tell them. It didn't do much good when I asked the police to arrest Pegasus for stealing my grandfather's soul. They laughed me right out of the station." Yugi sighed, recalling memories that seemed to have happened a life-time ago.

"What's this about me?" Solomon Moto piped up, looking over at his grandson as he came out form behind a large pile of boxes that had just been delivered, "Hello Joey."

Both Yugi and Joey were surprised. They had arrived at the front of the shop without realizing it, "H'llo, sir," Joey said, nodding politely.

"We were just talking, Grandpa," Yugi told the old man, wondering if he should perhaps tell his guardian about this latest predicament, then deciding against it. He quickly changed the subject, "What's all this?" Yugi motioned to the boxes that Solomon had started handing to a reluctant Joey Wheeler.

"Fresh shipments," Yugi's Grandfather grunted, handing a large box to Yugi, "Duel Monster cards, posters, video games, the usual," Grandpa picked up the last of the packages and opened the door for Joey. As an afterthought, the old man spoke again, "Oh and there's a guest waiting inside."

"Who?" Yugi asked, following after Joey. The older boy staggered inside, found his way through the doors to the back room and reemerged a moment later, trying not to show his fatigue.

"Why don't you go upstairs and see?" Solomon told them, walking clumsily into the back room to open up the boxes.

"Well, you heard them man," Wheeler told his younger friend, smiling, "Lead the way, Yug." The two quickly headed up the stairs into the living area of the store, where he and his grandfather resided.

A familiar, sultry female voice greeted the pair as they reached the top of the stairs that opened out into the living room, "Hey boys…Long time no see." Mai Valentine was sitting cross legged on the couch, the late afternoon sun shining in through the window behind her. She was wearing a purple chenille sweater, black mini-skirt and a smile, with a mug of hot chocolate in one hand.

"Mai!" Joey cried out, surprised. He ran forward to greet her quickly, but stopping before actually touching her, as he remembered they weren't alone, "You're back!"

"Yup," she said, grinning up at him, "Just got in this morning – did some calling around, and wound up getting invited over by Mr. Moto." She patted the couch, inviting them both to sit, "How've you two been? Haven't missed anything important, have I?"

"Actually," Yugi said, sitting down next to Joey (who had opted to sit down as close to Mai as possible), "Tristan and Tea have gone missing. No one's seen or heard from them since Friday. Just vanished off the face of the Earth without a trace."

"Oh my gosh…" she murmured, putting one hand up to her mouth, "Do you have any idea what might've happened? I mean, the certainly don't seem the type that would just run off without a word."

"Tristan can't even tell Tea how he feels about her, let alone pull some crazy stunt that woulda lasted _this_ long," Joey told her in agreement.

"We've got no clue," Yugi said, "All I know is that Tristan wanted to get together with Tea over the weekend."

"Hmm…" Mai said, setting her cup down on the coffee table. She shifted her position, sliding one arm under Joey's. "And no suspicious characters sending ransom notes either, huh?"

"Nope," Joey replied, almost chuckling, "And no postcards for Las Vegas."

* * *

"Bakura-chan, I have something the tell you."

"What's up?" the white-haired teen asked, nervously adjusting the top button of his jacket. He wasn't sure why he was so anxious around Athena. He simply _had _to stop listening to Barak.

Athena shivered slightly, as a cold breeze blew her hair around her face as the two of them walked down the consumer-crowded streets. She sighed, glancing at the younger man briefly before turning her attention back to the sidewalk and sighing, "I haven't been completely honest with you."

"About what?" Bakura asked, feeling slightly sick to his stomach. Was this the start of one of those dreaded 'I-don't-think-we-should-see-each-other-anymore' speeches he'd heard about?

"About the reason I'm here," she said, "It's not that I didn't want to see you…but there's more to it. If it was just that, I wouldn't have brought my siblings," she laughed slightly, "But I have to tell you now – I came because I'm worried about my sister…"

"Diana?" the teen questioned, slightly confused.

"Vitani," Athena clarified, "I had a strange dream about her a couple of nights ago and I…I think she's in trouble…" She blushed, "I know I must seem really stupid…getting so worked up about a dream."

"Have you called her, or had any contact at all with Vitani? It's not that I don't understand your concern, but she seemed fine when we left Egypt." Bakura found himself desperately wishing he didn't have to tread into these dangerous waters, but…a dream?

"I visited Kaiba Corp. earlier today," she said, "But they refused to tell me anything, and security at Kaiba's mansion wouldn't even let me in. it's like they're trying to cover something up…"

"Vitani should not have retained the Millennium Sword," Barak said, appearing in Bakura's place much to the boy's surprise, "She's playing a very dangerous game in holding on to that Item... and apparently, she's losing."

Athena noted the switch subtly, and then (deciding that for the moment the ancient spirit might be of some help to her) continued the conversation, "Then my vision was true…" she said sadly, "Jetsu has not fully been destroyed…"

"I know only that there has been some very suspicious magical activity recently," Barak stated flatly, ignoring the bite of the sharp, cold winds.

Athena, unused to the cold and not as good at ignoring it, hugged herself on instinct. "Can you detect where the signals were coming from…?" she asked, "Or do they not work like that?"

Barak held up the Millennium Ring, which began to point in various directions, "There are two Items at the manor of the Kaiba family… two more located somewhere near the Domino Museum… and my least favorite just ahead of us."

Athena glanced up and saw the green and yellow sign of the Kame Game Shop for the first time. "This is where Yugi lives?" she guessed.

"Yes," came Bakura's voice from behind them, where the boy had been quietly tailing the two.

The Greek woman gave Barak a reprimanding look, not wanting to order him to relinquish control of the body, but hoping he would get her meaning.

The spirit scowled back at her for a moment, then closed his eyes quickly and Bakura returned to his body, shivering from the sudden return of the cold, "Thanks."

"No problem," she said, smiling at him, "I figured it would be awkward if I had to walk in with him on my arm instead of you." To illustrate her point, she linked her arm with his.

Bakura went very red. He swiftly decided that the clouds were looking particularly interesting right now. 

"Do I make you uncomfortable, Bakura-chan?" Athena asked in a mock-innocent voice. They had reached the walk leading up to the Game Shop.

"Let's head in, shall we?" Bakura asked hurriedly, completely avoiding the question, "It's a bit nippy out, isn't it?"

* * *

"Yugi! We have more company!" Solomon called as he appeared in the doorway to the living room, where his grandson and his friends were still seated. Behind him, Bakura entered the room, with a very pretty young woman on his arm. 

It took Yugi a few seconds to recognize the face, but when he did, he couldn't help smiling, "Athena! What're you doing here?"

"She flew in last night," Bakura said, face still very red, though no one could tell if it was from the cold outside or a certain someone who had not released him yet.

"Last night, eh?" Joey asked, smiling smugly at his friend from his spot on the couch, "That's interesting..."

Solomon looked from one small group of young people to the other, then said, "I think I'll go back down to the shop to do some eaves – er…I mean unpacking." He quickly disappeared back down the stairs.

"Nothing happened," Bakura said, slipping out of Athena's grasp and unzipping his coat as an excuse, "Actually, I was asleep when they got in – fortunately Barak didn't chase them off."

"Them…?" Mai interjected, "Who's 'them'? You startin' a little harem for yourself, Bakura?" she asked teasingly.

"NO!!!" He yelled, extremely flustered. He calmed down as fast as possible and continued at a more moderate decibel level, "Athena's siblings came with her."

"Siblings?" Yugi said, "You never mentioned them before."

"Well, you never asked," Athena said, slipping off her own jacket and setting it aside by Bakura's, "So tell me, how have you three been holding up?" She sat down in an over-stuffed chair positioned at a nice angle from the couch and jerked a thumb at Joey, "This knuckle-head treatin' ya all right, Mai?"

"Of course he is," Mai said, smirking and putting a hand on her beau's thigh and squeezing affectionately.

"Where's all this 'knuckle-head' stuff comin' from? I'm not that bad, am I?" Joey directed his first question at Athena, but Mai's touch brought his questioning back around to her.

Mai smiled as she and Athena shared a quick look. "Just think of it as an affectionate nickname," she told him, "From your more clumsy days." She planted a quick kiss on his cheek and added in a whisper, "You're not that bad at all."

Yugi, sensing that this conversation was in need of a change, turned towards Athena, "So… was there a reason that you decided to travel all the way from Greece to Japan?"

Athena's mischievous smile quickly faded. "Yes actually," she said, "I was actually just explaining it to Bakura." She gestured to the Brit as he settled himself down on the floor across from the couch. "I came because I think Vitani may be having problems controlling the Millennium Sword."

As the group began swapping stories, Yami strolled over to the far window, where Barak was staring out at the orange sky. "An interesting turn of events, I suppose?" he said.

"It's no surprise that the girl can't control the power of the Sword, at least not in my opinion," Barak turned, looking his half-brother over bemusedly, "So… what of your missing weaklings? Has your feeble mind turned up any amusing ideas for me to hear?"

Yami scowled. "My only suspect is that Roman woman, Seline…she approached Yugi about the Puzzle, but after we refused her, she's left well enough alone," he said, leaning against the wall, clearly frustrated, "I thought that if it was her, she would've contacted us again by now…she didn't strike me as the patient type."

Barak nodded, clearly thinking hard. He turned towards the window again, looking out at the city, "Last night I was up long before the Greek and her annoyances came calling. Did you feel that energy surge? A very particular magical presence showed itself last night. I had not felt the likes of it since Egypt."

"I felt it as well..." Yami nodded grimly, "Is it really him…?"

"Not in his entirety. How is more the question now, but I have a hunch about that as well…"

"I'm listening," Yami said, "Do enlighten me, big brother. I look forward to hearing what your deductive skills have produced."

Barak frowned at his little brother, "The Sword, you fool. Did you honestly believe he would have challenged you to that duel without taking the necessary precautions?" the spirit snarled, despising his sibling more with every second.

"Call me a hopeless optimist," Yami said, smiling wanly, "I suppose my relief at having my charge survive the battle left me not worrying about Maeda's old possessions."

"Don't you get it? It is still his possession, even after these six months. My guess is he's beginning to gain control of his former servant. Do you believe you can defeat Jetsu Maeda for a second time? I have my doubts…"

"Then why don't you handle it?" Yami snapped angrily, immediately regretting the words, but unable to stop himself, "If you think you're so far my superior, why don't you prove it? Because all evidence from the last _four_ times you challenged me is in my favor!"

Barak's eyes widened in surprise, then narrowed dangerously, and for a long moment, it looked like he was dying to say any number of things to the Pharaoh. At long last, he seemed to find nothing at all to say and, with a look of utter disgust, disappeared, retreating into the Millennium Ring.


	13. Chapter 13 Preparations

A Note From the Authors: Behold the Four Conflicts of Barak & Yami - 

1. In Ancient Egypt, when Barak was sealed away into the Ring

2. In the woods, at Duelist Kingdom

3. On the blimp, at Battle City

4. In the pyramid, at the Egyptian Tournament 

* * *

Chapter 13

"Preparations…"

"I'm heading out, Vitani!" Kaiba called as he picked his briefcase up from the kitchen table. She seemed to be doing fine now, much to Seto Kaiba's relief. It was Friday already… just one more work day before the glorious weekend, "Do you need a lift?"

"No, I think I'll be fine," she replied from the living room, where she was straightening up Mokuba's mess from the game-fest of the previous night.

"Alright, I'll see you at work." Kaiba headed out the door without looking back, calling over his shoulder, "Your bus is waiting for you Mokuba!"

"Oh, crap!" the younger Kaiba cried, racing through the living room, and grabbing his backpack, "See you tonight, Vitani!"

Vitani smiled and waved as the little boy practically flew out of the manor. Just another few minutes with her nice hot coffee and then she'd have to enter the hectic world of business again. Pity.

Suddenly she felt a chill as a figure appeared from out of nowhere behind her. Chalie, the most loyal bodyguard of Seline Chrysogonus, was hovering several inches off of the ground about two feet away. Not that it was Vitani recognizing this fact. Jetsu's deep green eyes looked the man over boredly, **_"Yes?"_** he asked, putting down the steaming cup Vitani had been holding and turning to face the guard.

"We have prepared our end of the bargain. My Mistress now only requires the sacrifice of one human soul to complete the spell that will create a new form for you, Maeda." Chalie explained, noting the swiftness of the change in control of the body.

**_ "Fortunately for you, I have one right here. Her punishment for betraying me should be nothing less than death."_**Jetsu said, gesturing at himself.

"Ms. Chrysogonus thought you would want it that way. The spell shall be performed tonight, in the museum. See you there." Chalie disappeared again, leaving only Jetsu standing alone in the room. He closed his eyes and let Vitani out. It would be the last time he was forced to share bodies, and the last time that Vitani would see the light of day…

The Egyptian swayed where she stood, feeling a cold sinking feeling in the pit of her stomach. It had happened again…she had blacked out…he had taken control again. And yet, she was exactly where she had been before the world had gone dark. What had he needed to do…? Was he simply proving a point? Trying to shake the horrible feeling of dread slowly enveloping her, she grabbed her work things and left the manor, wanting to get to work (and Kaiba) as quickly as possible.

* * *

It had been another typically boring day at school. The last few days hadn't really been anything out of the ordinary, but Yugi was beginning to get a funny feeling in his stomach. He looked around to see if the spirit of the Puzzle was outside anywhere, but didn't see him. _'Yami? Are you there?'_ Yugi called within his mind, walking home slowly and trying to avoid suspicion by not talking to himself.

A brief moment later Yami materialized, translucent, beside his young host, murmuring, "I'm here…is something wrong?"

_'I'm not sure, really. Ever since Athena's visit I've had this bad feeling that I can't put my finger on. I know I've never been able to sense magic or anything, but something about that museum has got me worried.'_ Yugi had deviated from his usual course and was heading towards the Domino Museum, which seemed to look down upon all of the surrounding buildings.

"I know what you mean…" Yami said, staring up at the building, and Yugi noticed for the first time that there were darks circles under his eyes, as if he hadn't gotten a good night's sleep in a long while, "I've been sensing it too…"

_'What do you think is going on in there? I remember Barak's Ring detecting that there was a Millennium Item in there somewhere…'_ Yugi had come to a halt at the front of the museum, reading the sign outside the door that told of minor renovations having closed the building for the day. 

Yami sighed, "Yugi…I'm afraid I lied to you…that day when we first came here, Barak and I found what remained of the Millennium Shield down in an off-limits section of the museum. I didn't want to worry you then…and it seemed completely devoid of all its former powers, so I didn't consider it a threat…I'm sorry I didn't tell you before."

_'Why would anyone want a Millennium Item that had lost its powers?'_ Yugi wondered, staring through the clear glass doors into the empty, dark museum. He had chosen to ignore the fact that Yami had kept him in the dark. That didn't really seem important right now, _'And that still wouldn't account for the magical activity, if it was unusable…'_

"That's what worries me…" Yami said, "Perhaps that Seline woman has discovered a way to unleash the Shield's powers or perhaps…" he paused for a moment, putting his thoughts together, "Its old master has been calling to it…after all, Athena said Vitani may be struggling for control of the Sword."

_'Do you think that Jetsu is still… well…?" _Yugi started, trailing off quickly, as if afraid of the answer.

"I'm not sure…" Yami said, sensing the panic rising up in his counterpart, "I didn't want to believe it myself, but…" He kicked out at the marble steps leading up to the museum angrily, "If only there was someway to figure it out without having to barge in there and put you in danger. I wonder if Athena is having any more luck at getting through Kaiba Corp. security…an actual meeting with Vitani would answer a world of questions."

_'If only we could go talk to her everything would be a lot easier to figure out, but I doubt Kaiba would let us see her…'_ the young teen stated sadly.

"I suppose it doesn't hurt to try…" Yami shrugged, "How far of a walk is it to the Kaiba Corp. building from here?"

_'I lot longer than I want Grandpa to worry,'_ Yugi told his counterpart, reaching into his pocket and pulling out some change, _'Let's find a pay phone first.'_

* * *

The sky was turning red as the young dueling prodigy and his ancient spirit guardian pressed the call button on the tall steel gate outside the main building of Kaiba Corp. After a moment, when the pair wondered if anyone would even bother to answer, a crisp female voice came through the small speaker beside the button. "State your name and business, please."

"Um…Yugi Moto," the teen said nervously, noticing the security camera above them for the first time, "And it's very important that I speak to Seto Kaiba as soon as possible," he added at Yami's urging.

"One minute, please," the female voice said. Another long moment passed, "Seto Kaiba is currently unavailable. Would you like to leave him a message?"

Yugi gave Yami a 'what-now?' look and the Pharaoh took control of the body. "Tell Kaiba that I need to speak with him about his personal assistant…and her…previous employer. He'll know what I'm talking about."

The voice sighed, then continued in a more frazzled tone, "Young man, Seto Kaiba is the head of Kaiba Corporation. He is a very busy man-"

"Tell him," Yami said more firmly, looking right up into the security camera that was tracking him.

"…Very well…" the voice said, and another moment of silence fell. Then there was a loud buzzing sound and the gates swung open. "Please proceed," the voice said.

"Thank you…" Yami said as he strode up the long front walk and through the double door into Kaiba Corp.'s main lobby. One glass-elevator ride later, he was standing at the doors to Kaiba's office. 

"Kaiba!" Yami called as he pushed open both of the double doors, "We need to talk!"

The boy-billionaire was seated in a high-backed chair behind an elegant desk, with a wall of windows behind him. He looked nearly as drained as Yami did, and did not look at all happy to see the Pharaoh. "What do you want?" he asked.

"A Grecian girl came looking for Vitani several days ago. Why wasn't she allowed to see her?"

The brown-haired computer-genius frowned. "Vitani was…unfit to have visitors that day…"

"Unfit?" Yami repeated incredulously, raising an eyebrow at the boy billionaire, "What was the cause?" This would either confirm his suspicion that Vitani was losing control of the Millennium Sword, or that Kaiba was completely clueless about the possible danger of this situation.

Kaiba's face contorted as he evaluated his options. "Why do you care?" he said, deciding to answer the question with one of his own, "What has the Greek told you?"

"She told me that Vitani might be fighting a losing battle with her Item," the Pharaoh replied quickly, "There's a possibility that we could all be in great danger," Yami paused, taking in a deep breath. His worries had kept him up during the nights and he was now paying the price. He and Kaiba apparently had something in common.

Kaiba stood suddenly, slamming his fist down on his desk, "You think I don't know that?" he said angrily, as some sort of emotional dam crumbled inside him, "You think I can't handle it, right? I _won't _lose her to him, Yami! Dammit I lov-" He broke of suddenly, face flushed, as he slumped back into his chair, spinning it slightly towards the window, knowing he had let too much slip.

Yami started, taken aback by Kaiba's outburst. He leaned forward, his hands on Kaiba's desk. He began speaking quickly and more quietly, "Then you know? But… there's nothing we can do for her, not now. If he shows himself to us, then I might be able to defeat him in another duel-"

"I don't want your help!" Kaiba snapped, spinning back so they were face-to-face, "I can fight my own battles, Yami."

As Yami searched for his next argument, the door swung open and who should walk in but the young woman they had just been discussing. She looked paler than usual, and more than a little surprised to see her boss's guest. "Yami!" she said, nearly dropping the pile of papers in her arms, "Um…what are you doing here?"

Yami glanced over at Seto Kaiba, who was also staring at the sudden appearance of his assistant, "She knows, doesn't she?" he asked the brown-haired man.

"Of course she does," Kaiba muttered, and then said more loudly, "Perfect timing, Vitani. We were just talking about you actually."

"…What about?" she asked, setting the papers down on Kaiba's desk, eyeing both men warily.

"Athena's in Japan, Vitani," Yami said, "She's worried about you. She – and I – want to help you."

Vitani's expression showed gratitude for a moment, but then she shuddered; her posture changed dramatically and her eyes darkened, **_"It's far too late for help, my Pharaoh." _**Jetsu Maeda stated coldly.

Yami stiffened and Kaiba got to his feet once more, baby-blue eyes narrowed. "I won't lose her to you, Maeda," Seto growled.

**_"There's nothing you can do to save her now, Mr. Kaiba. You couldn't even defeat me with a partner on your side,"_** he directed his attention to the Pharaoh, ** _"Surprised to see me, Yami?"_**

"No…" Yami said, "Not pleased, but not surprised. I don't know what you're planning, but you won't get away with it."

**_"I'm planning to rid myself of this miserable host body, if you must know,"_** Maeda told them, looking rather annoyed, **_"It certainly isn't my look, anyway. I give her until the end of this day to live, so you might want to say your good-byes now. I'll be sure to pass them on…" _**

"You bastard!!" Kabia shouted. Yami watched him, as he quick as lightning, pulled none other than the Millennium Rod out of his desk drawer and point it threateningly at the body of his assistant.

Jetsu let out a long, loud laugh, **_"You don't even know how to wield that Item, let alone be a challenge for me with it." _**He raised his right hand and closed his eyes. In an instant, the Millennium Sword had appeared in his right hand, where he held it tightly in front of him.

"Don't push me…" Kaiba snarled, his own blood pounding in his ears.

**_"Don't tempt me, Seto Kaiba. It has been six long months since I last drew blood…"_**

Yami stepped forward, the Puzzle and Egyptian Eye on his forehead glowing brilliantly, "There'll be no blood drawn today, Maeda."

**_"But there will, my Pharaoh,"_** Jetsu said, scowling at the man. He jerked a finger at himself and grinned savagely, **_"Hers. Enjoy your last hours, boys!" _**he closed his eyes and gave up his control of the body.

Vitani came to with a most bizarre sight before her. Both young men in front of her, Millennium Items wielded and poised for battle. She felt the Sword in her hand and tossed it aside quickly. "I…he…what happened?" she stammered, putting a hand on her chest, "What did he say to you?"

Yami glanced over at Kaiba uneasily. The brown-haired man slid the Rod into a holster on his hip under his suit jacket and then came around the deck to stand in front of Vitani. "Come on…" he said, "Let's get out of here." He put an arm around her shoulders and steered her out of the office, giving Yami one last meaningful glance before leaving the room.

"Wow…" Yugi said, appearing beside Yami a moment later, "Who would've thought Kaiba was capable of caring that much about anybody…"

"His protectiveness of her puts her at even more risk," Yami sighed, the Eye symbol fading from his forehead, "Her mental defenses, if she had any left, will remain down for whatever is to come tonight."

Another voice cut through the thick evening air in reply. "I'm afraid you are correct, my Pharaoh," said a man's voice with a thick Arabian accent.

"Shadi!" Yugi cried, as both he and Yami turned to see the white-robed man standing by the large windows, with another young man beside him, "And…is that Void?"

The young man nodded, smiling slightly, "It is."

"I assume you two have come because of Vitani's situation?" Yami guessed.

Shadi and his apprentice exchanged quick looks before the older man nodded, "Indeed…and we fear for the young woman…but more so, we fear what a newly-reborn Jetsu Maeda would mean for the world."

"Newly-reborn?" Yami echoed, thinking out loud, "But how? The minute he destroys Vitani (if things go according to his plan) he'll have no host! Then the Sword could be sealed away and his spirit with it."

"Don't you think Maeda would've known about that?" Void asked, "He wouldn't risk destroying himself…he has a plan."

"One we are currently still speculating," Shadi said, "But our research leads us to believe he may be in the process of creating a new form for himself."

"How can someone just create a new body for themselves?" Yugi asked, sitting down on Kaiba's desk. Yami folded his arms, almost indignant at Void's comment.

"Not alone, to be sure," Shadi said, "And so I must ask you…has there been any sign of another dark magic-user recently? Someone who may be aiding him?"

Yugi looked over at Yami, who was leaning on the desk, "The Spirit of the Ring detected the presence of a Millennium Item at the Domino Museum. We explored the restricted section and found Jetsu's old Millennium Shield, but it was nothing but a hollow shell. There was no magic left within it. The Ring also pointed up at the Museum owner for a moment. What was her name, Yugi?"

Yugi thought hard, "Um… Seline Chrysogonus, I think…"

"I am not familiar with that name…" Shadi said, "But the museum may be worth watching tonight."


	14. Chapter 14 and Confrontations

A Brief Note from the Authors: To all - Seto Kaiba is not a rock. Please don't ask us to make him one. It will not happen. It is okay for him to have emotions, he's not a robot after all...or a rock. And this chapter's kind of long...not sure if that's good or bad...Enjoy anyway! ^_^

* * *

Chapter 14

"…and Confrontations"

"Well done, boys. I'm impressed, I truly am," Seline cooed, leaning between Todd and Chalie as the put the finishing touching on the elaborate paintings on the marble floor of the lowest level of the museum. 

All around them were the complex and intricately built ritual space. What was being finished was a large circle created in paints of red, white, black and gold, covered with hieroglyphics and other darker, cryptic-looking figures. Around the circle were place four tall gold poles, each with a ring of unlit candles at the top, all places at equal intervals around the paining. All around the room were tapestries and sculptures depicting the same figures that bedecked the floor. 

"Everything will be ready for tonight, correct?" she asked.

"Yes, Mistress," Chalie nodded, with a slight smile tugging at his usually thin mouth, "As I have already told you many times today."

"I'm sorry, but I just can't help being a little anxious," she admitted, standing up.

Todd sat back, brushing his bangs out of his face and watching the woman stride towards the back of the room, "And is that a good or a bad 'anxious'?" he asked.

"I bit of both," she said, pulling a switch on the nearest wall and illuminating the Millennium Shield, which was up on a stand, no longer encased by glass, but rather framed by heavy red curtains. After admiring it for a moment, she turned back to them, "The necessary precautions are in order, right?"

"Yes," Chalie said, getting to his feet and brushing dust off of the worn khaki pants and black tank-top he had chosen to wear for this near-to-manual-labor task, "The counter curse only requires two people to perform, and Todd and I have it memorized. If Maeda tries to betray us, he will find himself hostless once again, and you will have the opportunity to seal him away for good once that happens. You may not retain control of the Shield, but we will still remain alive. I took the liberty of believing you would value the latter over the former."

Seline smiled demurely, "You know me far too well, Chalie."

* * *

"You're staring…" Mai said, "What? Did I spill something on my shirt?"

Joey started, wrenching his eyeballs upwards to the cynical face of Mai Valentine. He began to blush, just now realizing that his eyes had drifted without his consent, "Wasn't starin', just… lookin'."

Mai's face went slightly pink with pleasure, and no matter how hard she tried, she couldn't keep her features hardened in annoyance. As much as she tried to deny it, she sort of…liked the fact that she could catch him staring. Resting her elbows on the table between them, she grinned, "See somethin' ya like?"

_Bad question, Joey ol' boy, very bad question…_ he thought nervously as he contemplated the possible answers. The truth was probably likely to result in bodily harm, but denial could end up that way as well. _Little honesty never hurt anyone before now_, "Yeah, you could say that…" Wheeler said speedily, stuffing another chop-stick full of ramen in his mouth in an attempt to avoid more dangerous questions.

Mai leaned back against the chair, still smiling. _He doesn't realize how gorgeous he is…_she mused, watching him eat, _Even at his most…ungraceful. Yes, he's completely oblivious. _She reached over the table and brushed a bit of noodle that missed his mouth off his cheek. "Slow down, tiger. Don't forget to come up for air," she told him teasingly.

Joey swallowed his large mouth-full, grinning sheepishly, "Sorry. I didn't mean to stare at ya like that…"

"S'alright," she shrugged, "Can't I don't enjoy it every once and again."

"Really?" the teen asked, incredulously.

"I know I get stares all the time," she admitted, "But they don't mean anything real. When it's you…I dunno…it's flattering."

"Uhhh… thanks, I think. As long as you don't mind an' all," the young man told her, one hand behind his head.

"Just don't make a habit out of it," she said, lifting her purse up onto her lap, "I'll cover tonight."

Joey put one hand over hers, one eyebrow raised, "You paid last time, Mai! Besides, it's only Ramen. Even I have enough money to pay for flavored-noodles."

"Okay…" she said, resignedly, "But shouldn't you be saving that money for college or something?"

"Yeah, but that would be a lost cause," Joey said, smiling sadly, "Even if I were smart enough to get into a college, I would never have as much money as necessary to even get in a community one, much less them fancy schools."

Mai sighed wistfully, "I wish I'd gotten the chance to make it past high school." Then shook her head as if it were silly to be wishing such things and asked him, "Well, if you don't plan on continuing in school, what will you do after graduation?"

"Get a job, maybe two," he replied, shrugging, "Something simple, as long as it pays the bills."

"You could always go into modeling," Mai said lightly, as she rose from their table, "You were a big hit last weekend."

Joey placed the correct amount from his rough-looking wallet down on the table, standing up after her, "I kinda get the feeling they were just humorin' me. Like I was some big joke or somethin'."

"No!" Mai said, looking horrified and taking hold of his arm, "Not at all…the other girls were raving about you in the dressing room…actually, it made me a little jealous," she admitted.

"Yeah?" he asked, grinning nearly ear-to-ear. He wrapped his arms around her waist from behind, whispering in her ear softly, "Don' worry, I'm yers as long as you want."

Mai grinned, "Forever and ever?" she asked softly.

"Well, I might croak during that time period, but other than that: sure."

She couldn't help but laugh, "Let's get outta here. Dessert's on me."

"Can't argue wit' that," he said, and the two of them strode out of the diner, arm in arm, into the gathering darkness.

* * *

"The answer is still no," Kaiba said firmly, blocking the doorway into his manor, "Vitani is not fit to see anyone right now. Don't make me say this again!"

"She doesn't even know I'm here, does she??" Athena spat, "If you'd tell her, I'm sure she'd want to see me!" She made again to shove past the man who was a full head taller than her.

"She doesn't need to see anyone now! Take one more step and I won't be responsible for what happens to you," Seto warned, still jamming her from coming in, "You are breaking and entering!"

"I'd like to see you try –" Athena growled.

"Seto, what's going on??" came a voice from within the foyer and both of them turned. Vitani was standing at the foot of the stairs leading to the upper floors, dressed more casually than usually, in gray pajama-pants and white long-sleeved T-Shirt. She was still looking rather pale, and the circles under her eyes had darkened. "Who's out there?"

"Vitani!!" Athena cried, ducking under Kaiba's spread arms and running towards her sister, "Tani, are you alright??"

"Thena?" the Egyptian gasped, finding herself in the Grecian's tight hug, "What in the world?"

"Vitani," Kaiba started, flushing pink at having his actions directly contradicted by his assistant, "You need rest, not distractions."

"Seto…" Vitani said, giving him a pleading look, "My sister is not a distraction." Then she pulled back from the Greek, one eyebrow raised, "What are you doing here, Thena?"

"Oh, Tani, I've been so worried about you," Athena said, embracing Vitani once more, "You look awful…it's true isn't it?" she said quietly after a brief moment, "He isn't gone, is it?"

Vitani winced, "No…no he's not, Thena. I'm glad you're here…I'm scared," she whispered, burying her face in Athena chest.

"It's alright…" Athena murmured, "We'll get through this…I promise…"

Seto Kaiba snorted and stormed out of the room. He was the one that had saved her from rotting in an Egyptian prison. He was the one that signed the second largest paycheck at Kaiba Corp for her every week! He was the one that had gone looking for her when she disappeared! But no, she turns to this come-out-of-nowhere sister that just happens to drop by after six months! _'That figures…'_ he thought, disgusted, _'with my luck…'_

"Boy, he sure seems to care a lot," Athena said sarcastically, looking off in the direction that Kabia had gone.

"Huh?" Vitani said, following her sister's gaze, "Oh no…Athena don't say that…I think he really does worry about me…but he doesn't like to say it. And I've been too afraid that he'll think badly of me if I ever opened up like this to him…he doesn't like weakness."

Athena's brow furrowed in thought, then asked gently, "Tani…is there something else going on here…? Between you two?" Her question was answered as the color rose in Vitani's cheeks. "I think you'd better go follow him," she said, "I'll wait for you here. We can talk again later, okay?"

Vitani nodded, smiling weakly, and ran off after Kaiba. She caught up with him in the kitchen, where he was seated on a stool in front of the counter, apparently sulking. "Seto…?" she asked hesitantly, coming up behind him, "I don't understand…what's wrong?"

"Nothing," he said, not turning around, "I just thought that you two might want some time alone." His hands were fiddling around with his Palm Pilot, but next to nothing was being accomplished.

Frustrated, she reached out and grabbed his hands, not making him drop the device, but making him focus on her. "Look – what happened this afternoon that you're not telling me? You've been acting strangely ever since we left work, like it's my last day or some-" she caught her breath, fear evident in her bright green eyes, "What did he tell you, Seto…?" she asked.

Kaiba found that he could avoid her no longer, "He said today _was_ your last day, Vitani! Jetsu plans to somehow kill you tonight! That's why I was keeping everyone away; That's why I wanted you and I to be alone! I have a much better chance of defeating him without others around to distract me! Why do you think Mokuba is spending the night at a friend's house?" All that had been bottled up inside had found its way out, trying to shed light on the ignorance he had caused earlier that day.

For a long moment Vitani was silent, taking it all in. Then she released his hands and clasped her arms around him tightly, too upset even to cry, and whispered, "Thank you…I – I wish I knew what else to say…"

He smiled a bit, thankful that she hadn't fled again, "You need to be with your sister now. Go, enjoy yourself. I'll deal with Jetsu when the time comes."

"I think she needs to be with you a little more," Athena said, as she appeared in the doorway, "There'll always be tomorrow for us to catch up. You just make sure she has a tomorrow, Kaiba." Then with a slight wave, she headed for the door to the manor.

* * *

Outside Mai's apartment building, she and Joey were lost in a tight lip-lock; neither one wanting to relent first, each lost in the warmth of the others nearness. At long last, Mai broke away from him, whispering, "Good night."

Joey sighed, gazing longingly into her eyes. "Yeah…g'night," he said, reluctantly turning to go.

"Wait," she said, quickly grabbing his hand.

"Hmm? What?" he asked, turning back to her.

Mai bit her bottom lip hesitantly, then blurted out, "Do you wanna come up?" _'What am I **doing**??' _she thought immediately afterwards, _'He's not ready for this…god, I wish he was ready…'_

Joey's eyes widened. Had she really said what he'd thought she'd said?! _'She wants me to come up to her apartment…and that means…' _He felt a shiver run through his entire body as he imagined what could possibly come next. "I…I…" he stammered.

_'Oh no,' _ Mai thought, _'I've just ruined the whole thing…Why did I have to go and open my big mouth? I should've controlled myself…'_

"Yes," he said suddenly, squeezing her hand, "I do." He swallowed nervously, but her smile relaxed him.

"Okay…" she said, "Come on." In silence, she led him into the building and up to her room. She unlocked the door and stepped inside, still pulling him gently behind her.

* * *

It was hours before the single to residents of Kaiba Manor both decided to turn in for the night. Seto set up a folding chair outside of Vitani's room, where he could wait to stop anything Jetsu had planned. Vitani hadn't been thrilled with this selected course of action, but agreed that it was probably for the best in the end. 

Sleep was difficult for someone who feared having their body possessed at any moment. By 2:00 AM, however, the Egyptian girl could hold off sleep no more. When her head hit the pillow and the last strands of consciousness left her, there was a familiar flash of light and the soul in charge of the body changed. Jetsu Maeda, ancestor of the highest priest of Egypt, smiled to himself, **_"Enjoy your rest, Vitani. Death during slumber is always easiest."_** He murmured an incantation quickly and his outfit changed from Vitani's night clothes to the traditional white robes he had worn during what should have been his greatest triumph over the Pharaoh. 

He put this thought to the back of his mind, comforted by the fact that his second chance was mere hours away. He rose and silently slid open one of the windows. He knew the fool, Seto Kaiba, was waiting out in the hall, so he opted for a more direct route out of the mansion. Using the woman's size and agility to his advantage, he leapt gracefully to the snow-covered yard two stories below, and then darted across it towards the wall surrounding the manor.

Several minutes later, the door to Vitani's room creaked open. Kaiba felt exhausted by the day's events. He just had to make sure that she was sound asleep and then he could head off to get some sleep. The sight that he found was startling: there was no sign of Vitani and… the window was open. The boy billionaire cursed loudly and tore through the room to get to the window. He saw the footsteps leading to the outer wall; that would be a start for now!

He leaped out of the window, not nearly as gracefully as he would've liked, but he hit the ground in a roll and was quickly on his feet, adrenaline pumping through his veins. Kaiba took no time at all following the footsteps to the wall and then climbing over it, with less difficulty than he would've thought. On the other side, the footprints continued on, but it had begun to snow again. He dashed off on the trail, knowing that if he didn't act fast, he would lose her forever.

* * *

Athena dragged herself up to Bakura's apartment, feeling an invisible weight pulling her downwards as she did so. She knew that Kaiba would do everything in his power to keep Vitani safe, but who knew if that would be enough. She wished there was more that she could do, but she also knew that trying to do anything would only hinder Kaiba's efforts and put her sister in even more danger. _Then why did you even bother coming…? _said a small voice in the back of her mind. She pushed the door of the apartment open, thinking, _You know, that's a really good question… _

"That sure took a while," Diana said, looking up from her seat at the kitchen table, "Did you get in?"

"Yeah…" Athena nodded, "I got to see her…she's looks terrible…but Kaiba insists that he knows what to do…"

"And you actually trust him??" Nick asked, coming out of the bathroom dressed in gray sweatpants, with a towel draped over his shoulders.

"I do…" Athena said, "If you had asked me yesterday, I definitely would've told you different but tonight…I saw a side of Kaiba I never thought I'd live to see. I think he really does care about her…and I trust that…"

"Wow…" Diana said, resting her chin in her hands, "Still…don't you think we should at least keep an eye on what's going on?"

"What are you suggesting?" Nick asked, cocking an eyebrow.

Diana crossed the room to where their things were stashed and unzipped her duffle bag. Inside were folds of what looked like old sheets and out of them, she pulled a gold statue of a slim, emerald-eyed cat. "I think it's time I got some use out of this," she said.

"Excellent…" Nick said, grinning, as all three siblings seated themselves in the Living room.

Diana waved her hand over the stature, murmuring an incantation, and with a brilliant flash, the statue blinked its jeweled eyes up at her. She stroked it gently and told it, "Seek out the darkest evil locked within the pure heart of our sister." The gold cat purred and leapt from Diana's lap, slinking to the door and vanished through it like a ghost. Diana raised her hands to her chest as a misty orb began to form between her palms. As she let go of the ball, and it floated between the three siblings, already they could make out the cat's perspective of the stairs leading to the first floor of the building. "Now all we can do is watch…and wait," Diana said, leaning back against the couch. 

* * *

"It is nearly time, my Pharaoh," Shadi said, finally moving from his meditative position. He seemed unaffected by the bitter cold where he, Yami, and Void stood just outside the Domino Museum.

"Yes, I can sense a powerful magic approaching." The ruler of Egypt nodded, still leaning against the double doors.

Shadi turned to Void, "I have no doubt that you will perform your part well. You need only distract him until I can complete the spell."

The young man nodded, though he looked nervous. Shadi placed the Millennium Key above both of their heads and they disappeared from view.

Void walked several paces, positioning himself in front of the doors leading into the museum.

Barely a minute had past when the magically-annulled man saw the approaching figure of Vitani, or rather, Jetsu Maeda. The other seemed not to notice him. He merely climbed up the many steps to the entrance of the large building uncaringly, stopping only feet away from Void. He raised an eyebrow, gazing lividly at his former servant, **_"I thought I would only be killing one of my servants tonight."_** Jetsu said cruelly, sneering, **_"Where have you been hiding these last six months, Void?"_**

The young man swallowed hard, and set his jaw. "I have not been hiding anywhere," he said, without a trace of fear in his voice, "And I will not permit you to enter this building."

Maeda slid the sword out of its sheath, then began taking slow steps towards Void, **_"I have no time for your idiocy tonight, Void. You always were a sniveling little fool; I should have done away with you the same night I killed your parents. Why I thought that you would be a suitable servant escapes me now."_** He raised the blade and pointed it straight towards the young man, the point mere millimeters away from the vulnerable throat area, **_"Move."_**

A brief fire flickered in Void's eyes, as he was forced to absorb this piece of information that he had so longed for. He had not wanted to find out this way, but now there was no undoing it. Quickly, he reached within the folds of his cloak and drew out a sword of his own, taking one step back so that the blades were just nearly touching. "No." With that Void rushed forwards, swinging downwards with his blade towards Vitani's mid-section. Shadi had told him to take any action necessary to keep Jetsu from entering the building, even attempt to take Vitani's life. Not that the Pharaoh had been informed of this.

"What is he doing??" Yami whispered harshly to Shadi from their hiding place, "What did you give him permission to do?"

Shadi did not break his concentration and continued his Egyptian spell, simply shaking his head to wave away Yami's question. 

Jetsu did not move until the last second possible. He swung his extended arm ninety degrees to the right, making the Millennium Sword connect with Void's rapier rapidly. The move cleaved the weaker, steel sword in two, the magic qualities of the Millennium Item clearly more powerful that a normal object. The startling move threw Void completely off balance. Jetsu lashed out one foot and knocked Void to the ground. He glared down evilly at his former servant, his weapon raised, ** _"If you will not move, you will die!"_**

As he brought the weapon down, he froze in mid stroke, glowing with a misty yellow light. He cried out in rage as Void scrambled to his feet. The young man watched as Shadi and Yami came back into view, Shadi holding the Millennium Key and Yami looking grim. He was not looking forward to facing off with Maeda again, but at least this time, it would not put his host in any danger.

"We must act quickly," Shadi said, ignoring the string of Egyptian curses Jetsu was hurling at them all, "The holding spell will only last long enough for me to open up the girl's mind. After that, it will be all up to you."

"I'm ready," Yami said. Shadi raised the Key up to Jetsu's forehead, where the burning red symbol of the Egyptian Eye was visible.

Before he could enter into the man's mind, more footsteps reached their ears. Yami turned, trying to see who the approaching figure was through the light snow that had begun. Void's eyes widened, "Is that not Seto Kaiba? What is he doing here at this hour?"

"It is him," Yami said, nodding slowly, "And I have a hunch as to why he showed up here…"

"He cannot help the girl, my Pharaoh," Shadi spoke up warningly, "His magic is weak."

Yami's eyes narrowed, "Somehow…I don't think that's going to stop him."

Void brushed past the strange trio down the Museum steps, meeting Kaiba at the foot of them. "You should not be here," he said, "You will only be getting in the way. Don't–"

"Get out of my way," Seto said angrily, pushing past Void and dashing up the stairs.

As he approached, Shadi muttered, "If you are to act, now would be the proper time, Yami. Before he can interfere."

"I know…" Yami said, but he did not move.

Kaiba pulled the Rod out from its place on his belt, raising it towards Yami and Shadi, "What are you doing to her? This is my battle!"

"I expected you would come," Yami said calmly, "Your battle is to take place within Vitani's mind, and we have simply restrained Maeda long enough to let you enter it, with the aid of Shadi's Key."

"What are you talking about?" Seto Kaiba asked, confused.

"Why don't I show you Seto Kaiba?" Shadi asked, his voice weak and his brow covered in sweat, "Good luck, Mr. Kaiba. You're going to need it."

Before Kaiba had a chance to ask how it was possible to enter the mind of another, he felt a hard jolt from somewhere around his naval and was suddenly enveloped in a wash of color and images that passed by to quickly to be recognized. After a few dizzying seconds, he landed on a hard surface, on his back. Moaning slightly of nausea and soreness, he sat up, rubbing the back of his head and trying to will his eyes to adjust to the dimness more quickly. 

As he stood, he took in the strangeness of his surroundings. The building he was in looked like a crumbling temple, with pits of stone falling off the walls and torn tapestries hanging limply on them. There were flickering torches nearly about to go out in a few places, and as he wandered closer to where the most seemed to congregate, he found himself standing in front of a large stone altar. Lying on the altar wearing a worn-out, white dress, and bedecked with tarnished gold jewelry, was Vitani. She was unconscious, her skin was covered in bruises and cuts, and her face was streaked with old tears.

With a trembling hand, he reached out to touch her face, fighting back the fury that was brimming inside him. "What has he _done _to you?!" he whispered.

**_ "Nothing,"_** came a concise, male voice from behind him. Jetsu Maeda, in his true form, stepped out of the shadows and into view, **_"She's been beating herself up for the past six months, about her time spent as my servant. It made it that much easier for me to gain control of her feeble mind and body."_**

"You bastard…" Kabia growled, wheeling around and pulling the Rod out of its holster, "I won't let this continue."

**_"There's nothing you can do to stop me now, I'm afraid,"_** Jetsu told him, shaking his head as he walked the few steps up to the altar, ignoring the presence of the Millennium Rod, **_"You were a fool to come here, Seto Kaiba. Shadi's spell will have worn off in a matter of minutes and all this commotion is sure to attract Seline. Then I'll be able to get out of this pathetic host and into my own body."_**

"You son of a bitch!" Kaiba roared, sprinting forwards, swinging at the older man with the hatchet-like end of the Millennium Rod.

Jetsu had the Sword in his hand in an instant, managing to block the attack at point-blank range. The two men struggled mightily against each other for a second or two, when Maeda lifted his other hand and pointed it at Kaiba's chest. A small orb of black-light appeared in his hand without warning and he yelled loudly, forcing the orb into a beam of energy that smashed right into Seto and knocked him backwards off of the altar.

The young man picked himself up quickly, clutching at his chest, only to find a hole burned in the front of his jacket. He tore it off, as it only impeded his movements anyway, and turned back to Maeda. "What the hell was that?"

**_"Simple, pure energy," _**Jetsu said, sheathing the Sword and forming another red orb in each hand, **_"You see, in this realm we can do no harm to each other in mere conventional, physical ways. With the proper magical training, one can conjure these blasts with pure concentration of energy. I've had six months to develop a skill unique to only this place, but your soul will be destroyed long before you could even begin to comprehend how to manage it." _**He spun one orb on his forefinger playfully, **_"Not only that, but if you try to evade my attacks, the damage to the wench's already feeble mind will be much too severe for her to ever recover from."_**

****Kaiba growled in frustration and clutched the Millennium Rod tightly. If physical attacks wouldn't work he'd have to move on to Plan B. That would have been fine, he mused, if there was a Plan B. He'd never gotten the chance to learn to control the Rod, so he'd have to play this one by ear. 

Before he could even begin to think of his next move, Jetsu fired another blast at him. There was ample time to avoid it, but Vitani's mind was at stake here. He lifted the Rod in front of him as a shield and found that, although the shock wave knocked him backwards, the Rod had absorbed most of the blast on its own. Somewhat relieved, he stepped forwards again, not having a clue as to what he should do, except that he had a means of defending himself now.

**_"Little annoyance!"_** Jetsu shouted, sheathing the Sword once again and sprinting forward at top speed.

Kaiba swung the Rod as a reaction, but the metal axe seemed to go right through the man. Jetsu put his right hand above Kaiba's (which was still gripping the Millennium Item firmly) and put his left up to Seto's face. The next blast seemed weaker than the previous two, but perhaps it was simply the temporary fatigue at having used so much magic in so little time.

Seto was thrown into the stone altar on which Vitani lay, and in the midst of all the pain tearing through his face, he felt the heavy weight of a soft body falling on top of his. Through bleary eyes, he realized that Vitani had rolled off of the altar, and panic gripped at him. Trying to ignore the fact that he could barely see to tell where the next attack might come from, he cradled her in his arms, struggled to his feet and set her back on the altar.

**_ "Sentimental fool," _**Jetsu spat, tossing the Millennium Rod aside. The Priest slowly began his trek back to where his opponent stood, looking around on the walls, **_"This place certainly has gone downhill in six months,"_** he commented mildly, **_"You used to be able to see the scriptures on these ramparts so easily. I would think that you would be interested in them, Seto Kaiba. You're mentioned in quite a few of them."_**

Kaiba was leaning against the altar, staring down at Vitani's helpless, desecrated form as Jetsu's words sank in. "What are you talking about?" he panted.

**_"Vitani has a long line of Egyptian history, much like you and _****_ I. Her ancestry has been interlinked with yours since the time of the Millennium Items and the Shadow Games."_** He turned away from the writings on the walls of Vitani's mind, smiling at Kaiba, **_"Ironic, how both of your lines will end together as well."_**

****"…Interlinked with…mine…?" Seto echoed, turning around with difficulty.

Jetsu lifted both hands as an enormous orb of black light and red sparks formed between them. With a roar, he released it, letting it sail across the chamber, incinerating the altar and blowing both Kaiba and Vitani into the air. Seto hit the nearest wall and slid to the floor. As he tried to crawl over to Vitani's lifeless figure, Jetsu swooped down upon him, grabbing hold of him by the hair and yanking him upwards violently. **_"Get it through your thick, bleeding head, boy," _**he hissed, **_"Do you think the connection between you is a coincidence? Read the wall! You should understand before I send you both to hell." _**

****Kaiba's eyes traveled up to the top of the hieroglyphics and it was as if one of Ishizu's flashbacks had been placed before him.


	15. Chapter 15 The Final Battle: Surpressed ...

Author's Note: First, merry early Christmas...here's your present: a new chapter. Read it...review it...be happy... Next, we know Seto Kaiba's ancestor has been called "Seth" in other sources, but it just sounded so boring, so we found an alternative name that is indeed Egyptian. So don't try to correct us, we already know. Anyway, enjoy!

* * *

Chapter 15

"The Final Battle: Suppressed Memories"

Aset, priestess of the goddess of the same name, was kneeling in the temple in which she served, her long blonde hair falling in front of her face as she bowed her head to the golden statue before her. Her beloved, the High Magi Seti, would be coming that night and she wished to consult with the goddess before he arrived. She wanted everything to be perfect; she had already prepared a chamber for the two of them to spend the night, and she sought the goddess's blessing.

As she knelt on the stone steps, reaching out with her soul to the will of the goddess, she caught a subtle change in the wind, and her eyes snapped open. _'There's someone here,' _she thought, and knowing at once that it was too early for it to be Seti. Fueled with the ferocity of the goddess she served, she leapt to her feet and dashed out of the room, pulling a short dagger out of a sheath on her belt as she did so.

She arrived in the chamber devoted to tributes quickly and silently. Within the chamber, a young man with wild white hair was stealthily picking through the most recent pile of treasures the city had offered to the temple. Deftly, she moved towards him, coming up directly behind him where he was crouched down admiring a large chest of gold and jewels. She placed the dagger along side of his throat, just enough so he could feel the cool touch of the metal, and said sternly, "On your feet, thief."

Barak froze, a shiver running through his body. He had never actually been caught before and his overconfidence had left him off his guard. _'I must be getting old…' _ He stood slowly, the wind blowing through his ragged, worn cloak. He glared at the woman (obviously a high rank official by her clothing), his dark brown eyes filled with a lifetime of rage and hate. The Millennium Ring around his neck glistened in the moonlight, the only untarnished part of his adornment. "What do you want?"

"I want you to remove yourself from this temple," she said, her own green eyes flashing dangerously, "You dishonor the goddess with your presence. Leave, and don't come back, lest you provoke her wrath."

Barak laughed out loud, not caring about the dagger still hovering close to his neck, "If the Gods had the courage, they would have killed me ten years ago." He shifted his stance slightly, bristling for a confrontation. The Millennium Ring began to glow slightly, removing some of the remaining shadows that were shrouding his face in darkness, "But they dare not move against a possessor of a Millennium Item."

"Possessor or not, I will not allow this desecration to continue!" she said, shifting the dagger so its point was nearly at his jugular.

"Put it away, girl," the man said angrily, a glowing, golden, Egyptian Eye symbol appearing on his forehead. The Ring began to shine even more brilliantly and Barak could feel the magical energies flowing through his body once again, "Depart from here and you may keep your life!"

"The sacredness of this temple is of more value to me than my own life," she said stubbornly, and moved to thrust the blade into his throat.

Barak half-closed his eyes, actually a bit amused. The dagger touched his throat, but that was as far as it could get. The Millennium Ring offered him its protection in time of need and the speed to grab the girl's arm in time had been granted him. It was a skill he hadn't used in ten years, not since that night where he had taken the life of Pharaoh Yami I with his own hands. He didn't give her a second chance at taking his life; the Ring was powerful, but not invincible. The thief grasped her hand with his own, forcing her to turn the dagger around. With a thrust of strength, Barak stabbed the Priestess with her own blade.

Aset's eyes widened in shock as pain tore through her stomach. She coughed and blood flew from her mouth in flecks that hit Barak's face, though he didn't even flinch. Grinning sadistically, he pulled the dagger back out and watched as she fell to the floor. He stood over her, unmoved as a pool of blood began to form around her, tainting her pure white clothes and beautiful blonde hair. It seemed a shame for something so lovely to end in this manner, but the foolish girl had brought it upon herself. He tossed the dagger aside, gathered up what treasures he had come for, and left the temple.

*

High Magi Seti couldn't help but smile as he climbed the stairs of the Temple of Aset. His life had taken a definite turn for the better in the past season. His plans for war on the Pharaoh were nearly complete (which was perfect with the Pharaoh bogged down trying to stop the string of robberies on the high temples) and he had even found someone he truly cared about: Aset. Beautiful, kind Aset. 

She was not in the main chamber of the temple, so he took to wandering the rooms, searching for her. He discovered the room she had prepared for them, but she was not waiting for him there. Wondering mildly if her duties had let her lose track of the time, he passed by the tribute chamber.

The man did a double take a few feet past the door and ran back, gaping at what he could see so horribly clear in the moonlit room. Aset was curled on the floor in a puddle of blood, her own blood-stained dagger a few feet away. "Aset!!" he cried, running to her side, turning her slowly onto her back, staring aghast at her blood-drenched clothes and lifeless eyes. 

Slowly, he closed her eyes with one shaking hand. "…no…" He gathered her up into his arms, dissolving into tears as he felt the last bit of warmth leave her body. "…don't leave me…"

*

The sun was already rising by the time Seti had completed the trek back to his palace. His servants stared with a mixture of horror and disgust, but a single glance from Seti was enough to send them fleeing away back to their chores and the like. What he was looking for wasn't in his palace, it was behind it. The stone he had specially hand-carved of the Blue-Eyes White Dragon Monster shielded his eyes from the morning sun with its overcast shadow. 

His own elegant robes were stained with Aset's blood, as he had carried her near to him all night, but he took no notice. He dropped to his knees before the carving, staring up at it, his face a mixture of so many emotions. In one single night, it seemed like his whole life had come crashing down around him. In one senseless act of greed and violence, his beloved had been taken from him. 

He lifted her up towards the carving, pleading, "All mighty Creature of the Light, how many years have I been your faithful servant?? How long have we existed for each other's benefit?? How many times have you blessed me in my quest to become supreme? Why now, would you abandon me – leave me alone in this world with no more cause for my ambitions?" He brought Aset's body back closer to himself, his voice cracking with sadness as he continued, "I beg of you…don't allow her to leave this realm. Catch her soul before it reaches Anubis – do anything in your power to keep her from the Scales. I…I cannot continue on this way…I've been exposed to her for to long to let her go so easily."

He stayed on the ground for what seemed like an eternity, before out from the tablet of stone came the translucent form of the mighty dragon creature. It towered over Seti, looking down at its master and good friend with its small, watery blue eyes. The man locked eyes with the creature, unable to think of any other words to say to the monster. After another moment, the giant reptile knelt low to the ground, bending its head over towards the dead body in Seti's arms. It unfolded its enormous wings, revealing what looked like the sleeping soul of Aset on the monster's back. 

The High Magi's face brightened and he lifted the body up once again, as the dragon lowered its head enough that the soul slid down its neck and merged with its physical counterpart. Instantly, the gaping wound in Aset's stomach began to close itself. She stirred and Seti clutched her close to his chest, overcome with joy and relief. The mighty dragon emitted a guttural sound almost like purring before it faded away, back into the stone carving once again, its work completed. 

* * *

**_ "You see now what I mean?"_** Jetsu asked softly, watching Seto's expression change with each paragraph of scripture,**_ "Your ancestor was a sentimental fool, just like you – which is why he never achieved real power. That's why he was banished by the Pharaoh. You've had long enough! Time is up!" _**The man growled, bashing Kaiba in the head once again with a black energy blast which sent him sprawling across the floor.

****Kaiba moaned softly and struggled to stand up again. His head was pounding and small red drops appeared all around him as he stared at the cold, stone ground. Once he managed to stand, he wiped his bloodied bangs out of his eyes, anger coursing through him. Jetsu was going to end both his and Vitani's lives here and now if he didn't do something quickly. Mokuba would be left alone…

Without thinking, Seto Kaiba, descendent of one of the most powerful mages in Ancient Egypt, raised his right hand and fired off a small blast of magical energy at his enemy.

Maeda was so surprised that he wasn't able to block the blow, which hit him in the stomach and toppled the evil overlord. He picked himself up quickly, and the glare he shot at Seto was one intermixed with confusion. "How the hell were you able to do that??" he spat, and then shrugged "Heh…well, it doesn't really matter. You won't get that opportunity again!" With that, he launched a barrage of black energy forward.

Seto fired another of his own, weaker, slower shots, but to no avail. His feeble, unpracticed beams of light were no match to the mighty bombardment of energy that was set against him. Even if there was any time to dodge away, Seto no he wouldn't be able to bring himself to. Vitani would be hurt and she had suffered enough already. Once again he was pelted with the magical black fireballs, felling the boy billionaire again.

**_"You're dead, Seto Kaiba. You can't win against me. You might as well leave this Realm now. If you go, I may even let you live once I have my own body back."_** Jetsu stopped walking forward, smiling like a small child, **_"But if you wish to continue, let's have a little fun first."_** He raised one hand and fired off a blast not at his opponent, but at the ceiling, bringing down a rain of stone and dust.

"NO!" Kaiba cried, "What are you doing?!?" 

**_"This place is worthless to me. I see no point in keeping it intact, do you?"_** Maeda asked sadistically, powering up another shot, **_"Better get up, little Kaiba. Vitani's going all to pieces!"_** He released his grip on the tiny black energy orb, making another hole in the ceiling.

His own blood was pounding in his ears as Seto struggled to his feet once again. He couldn't let this continue…there had to be someway he could stop it. He spotted the Rod, lying discarded on the floor near Vitani's crumpled form and a vague course of action began forming in his head. While Maeda powered up yet another blast, Kaiba made a dash for the Rod, grabbing it without ever breaking a stride. With a cry of fury, he made a near-complete circle of the room, placing himself in front of the High Priest. "I won't let you destroy her!" he shouted, feeling his own rage pulsated through him, manifesting itself in the pure white glow that enveloped the Rod.

Jetsu was quite surprised at the rashness of the young man, **_"You have no choice in the matter, boy!"_** Maeda pulled the Sword out of its Sheath and it began to glow completely black, a direct contrast to that of Seto Kaiba's Item, **_ "This is the end of the line for you, Mr. Kaiba! Goodbye!" _**The descendent of Egypt's most powerful High Priest released his energy blast, putting his full magical force behind the attack. He was wasting time here with this boy; the longer he waited the more chance there was that Seline would call off their deal.

But the noble goal of the descendant of the most powerful mage in Egyptian history seemed to magnify the white energy of its own accord, and as Seto watched, blinded by his need to call forth the strength to save her, a blast equal to Jetsu's in size shot out of the Rod, hurtling towards the oncoming black blast.

The Egyptian man watched in shock as the two blasts collided, causing the very Realm around them to shake slightly. A bead of sweat began to slip down the man's forehead, but he pressed on, fueling his blast with every ounce of magical strength and training he could come up with. At the very center of the two fighting energies, the black energy slowly inched forward, pushing on its direct counterpart.

Kaiba felt himself sliding slowly back along the floor as the black energy surged closer to him, but he refused to relent. If only he could figure out how to summon more energy to his own blast! 

A sudden flash of energy shot across the floor past him, nearly making him lose his balance! He watched the golden jet slide under the conflicting blasts with ease, and even though he could no longer see Jetsu, he heard the cry of surprise and anger that told him it was the only advantage he was ever going to get. So he willed his energy onwards with all his strength, and slowly but surely, his own white energy began pushing back on the black. _'YES!! Just a little more…'_

Jetsu grunted in pain as the smaller blast came flying out of nowhere. He was startled to see Vitani supporting herself on one elbow for a minute, grimly smiling at him,**_ "I cannot be defeated again, especially not by the likes of you, Seto Kaiba!"_** He forged onward, but could already tell that his efforts were all for naught. The growing red stain on the front of his pure white robes was a mark from the latest assault on him, and the injury; must have been more serious than he had originally thought. The white energy approached him rapidly, consuming more and more of the deadly black beam he had set against his enemies, _'I was so close… no one would have been able to stop me this time… but I failed. Once again, I failed.'_

Jetsu Maeda, last surviving member of one of the oldest lines of Egypt, felt all will to continue leave his being. He lowered his hands and looked down towards the ground, **_"Seline Chrysogonus will destroy you for this. Her greed has no bounds, and I promised her riches she had only before dreamt about. Your days are numbered…Tell the Pharaoh for me, won't you?"_**

The white light filled the room and before Kaiba could consider Maeda's last words, he was blasted by cold air, marking his return to the physical world. He was still on his feet, sweating despite the cold, and breathing heavily. He felt movement close to him and turned numbly to see Yami staring up at him, his eyes wide.

"What happened…?" the Pharaoh asked.

Kaiba said nothing. His attention was solely on Vitani, who was lying on the ground in front of him. Stooping low, he gathered her up into his arms and left without another word, vanishing into the snowy night.

Shadi spoke up slowly, looking very drained from the excess of magic he had had to perform, "This battle is over…Maeda is gone…"

"Yes…" Yami nodded, "And yet…" he trailed off, unable to word his thoughts.

"You feel the true battle is only beginning?" Void finished for him.

Yami nodded and Shadi replied, "Time will tell…but I feel it is not worth considering tonight. I, for one, am ready for a long bout of meditation."

As they began their descent of the museum stairs, a sleek golden cat crossed in front of them. It stopped momentarily, blinked large emerald eyes at them, and then darted off into the shadows. 

"What the…?" Yami said.

Shadi murmured, "We were not alone tonight…seeking the holder of the Millennium Statue would be a wise next move."

"A task that will be left for another time…" Yami added, "I expect I'll be seeing the two of you again soon."

"Indeed, my Pharaoh," Shadi nodded, "Until then…"

The master and apprentice then parted from the Pharaoh.

High above the King of Egypt, the Spirit of the Millennium Ring was still looking down on the scene of the recent battle. The cold night air and light snow could do nothing to cool the rage of Egypt's most notorious thief. Barak was livid, his fists clenched together in anger, _'That coward!'_ he thought indignantly, _ 'Allowing Seto Kaiba to do his dirty work for him! After all that shit he gave me about how he was more powerful than Jetsu…'_ He spat contemptibly down at the ground, hate for his half-sibling coursing through his veins. Barak snorted and walked off. Bakura was bound to wake up eventually, and he should be his bed at that time…


	16. Chapter 16 Reunions: A Moment's Peace

Author's Note: After a brief hiatus whist we waited in vain for more reviews, we now update our story once again! Enjoy!

* * *

Chapter 16

"Reunions: A Moment's Peace"

9:00 AM. The door to Mai Valentine's apartment opened slowly and Joey Wheeler stepped out, dressed in the same clothes he'd worn the day before. Behind him, Mai was leaning against the doorway, dressed in a lavender bathrobe that hung loose over one bare shoulder. 

She pressed a single key into his hand. "Take this," she said with a smile, "So you'll always have a place to come to."

Joey closed his fingers around it, and then put it into the pocket of his jeans. "Thanks," he said, taking hold of her hand, "This means a lot, Mai."

She smiled and then kissed him gently, pulling away after a moment and telling him, "Go on, get out of here."

Joey nodded, took one step towards the elevator at the end of the hall, and then stopped short. Suddenly driven by an unknown impulse, he whipped back around, grabbed her by the arms and covered her mouth with his. He broke off just as quickly, whispered "I'll be back – I promise," and then headed off quickly down the hallway.

Dumbstruck, Mai leaned back against the door frame, eyes wide, the color slightly heightened in her cheeks, the taste of him still lingering on her lips. She brushed her hair out of her face absentmindedly, wondering where that had come from. She shook her head, and as she turned back into the room, she felt a strange tingling in her stomach. Thinking it nothing but butterflies brought on by the sudden surprise (not to mention the unexpected events of the previous night), she shut the door behind her, leaving the corridor deserted once again.

* * *

9:30 AM. The roof of his foyer faded in and out of focus before Seto Kaiba's eyes. He moaned, and put a hand up to his throbbing head. Morning sun was shining through the glass panes on the ceiling and he recalled with a dulled sense of relief that he was not alone of the marble floor. Rolling over onto his side, he found himself face to face with Vitani. 

She looked to be sleeping peacefully, and he noticed that much of the color had come back to her normally tanned skin. He reached out and brushed her bangs out of her face, and she stirred at his touch. Her eyes slowly opened and met with his. Gradually, her lips curled into a small smile.

"Are you all right?" he asked her.

Small tears welled in her shining green eyes and in an instant she had lifted herself up onto her elbows and rolled him onto his back. She lingered for a moment, her face hovering above his, and then brought her lips down upon his.

Seto froze for only a second and then brought his arms up around her, overwhelmed by the new sensation. In the back of his mind, he realized that this was actually his first kiss, having been much too occupied with what he had deemed 'more important things' before. He praised himself inwardly for putting it off until he had found _her_, as the taste of it was surely much sweeter that he had waited.

After a long moment, she raised herself up again, still lingering mere centimeters apart. Her tears hit his face like cleansing waters and he smiled up at her, brushing her hair out of her face once more. "You did it…" she choked.

"I couldn't have done it without you," he told her honestly.

"I don't know how I can ever thank you…" 

"That kiss was a pretty good start," he said, smirking.

"Yeah?" she said, in the same light-hearted tone, "Thanks for the hint." She leaned down and kissed him once more. Then she lowered her position slightly, lying her head down on his chest, comforted by the steady beating of his heart. "This changes everything…" she murmured.

"Only for the better…" he said, stroking her hair gently.

"I love you…" she whispered.

"And I, you," he assented, "Since the beginning of time…"

"What…?"

"It's a long story," he sighed, "I'll explain it to you later."

* * *

9:30 AM elsewhere. Yami was sitting on the edge of Yugi's bed in spirit form, watching his protégée sleep. He had purposely taken control of the body and left Yugi out of the previous night's events. There had been no need to endanger him in that respect, and now it was over anyway, and they could enjoy a brief rest before moving forward to meet their next challenge.

He stretched out a hand and laid it on top of (or rather through) the boy's own. "Yugi…" he said, "Wake up."

The boy stirred slowly, his body not quite willing to abandon its slumber without a bit of a fight. Yugi Moto sat up very slowly, rubbing his eyes and blinking dully, "Morning, Yami."

"It's all over," Yami said, deciding it best to get right to the point, "Jetsu is finally gone."

Yugi's eyes widened in surprise, "What? When? How?" This new piece of information had done a much better just of awakening the boy that even the cold chill of having a hand stuck through his head.

"Last night," Yami said, "I'm sorry I didn't wake you for it, but I wasn't sure how things were going to go and I wanted to keep you out of danger. I suppose I needn't have bothered, though. Seto Kaiba was the one who actually put himself in harm's way."

"What do you mean?" the young man asked curiously, "Why was Kaiba there at all?"

"It seems that there's one more attachment in Kaiba's life than he would have ever been willing to admit had the situation not been so dire," Yami said, grinning slightly, "His put his soul on the line to save Vitani…"

Before Yugi could reply, the gruff voice of his grandfather traveled up the stairs and reached his ears, "Yugi! Would you please come down here for a minute!?"

"Coming, Grandpa!" the teen called back, then slid out of bed and into his slippers, motioning for Yami to follow as he headed out of his room.

* * *

"What is it, Grandpa?" Yugi asked as he reached the kitchen. The sight before him woke him up even more (possibly) than the news a few minutes earlier had: Tsuki was sitting at the kitchen counter, looking a lot more grown up than the last time he'd seen her, and grinning at him.

"Yugi! I've missed you!" she cried, hopping off the stool and running to embrace him. 

"Tsuki," he gasped, blushing slightly, "What are you doing here? I thought you weren't going to be back until next week."

"My parents got their work done early and got the soonest flight out of America," she explained, "Didn't you read my e-mail?"

"I haven't really had…time to check my e-mail recently…" he admitted, one hand behind his head, "Sorry."

"That's okay," she said, loosening her grip on him, "You're still glad to see me, right?" 

"Of course," he said earnestly, "I've missed you too."

Grandpa chuckled, "I'll just leave you too alone for a little while," and left the room.

Dedi's spirit form appeared beside Tsuki the instant he had gone. "Hey, kid," she said, grinning, "How ya been?"

"Alright…" Yugi shrugged, then glanced around, "Now where'd Yami get off to?"

"I'm right here," Yami said from the doorway.

"Yami!!" Dedi cried, rushing to him and knocking him to the floor with a tackle any football couch would admire.

Yugi sighed. Nothing would ever change between those two. He turned instead to Tsuki, who was looking just as embarrassed as he had been, "So…," the boy started shyly, "How's life been treating you, Tsuki?"

"Not too bad," she shrugged, "I had a growth spurt, see?" she drew herself up to her full height and was exactly eye-to-eye with him, "Pretty soon, I'll be taller than you, 'cuz it takes boys longer to hit puberty." 

Yugi laughed slightly, "I don't think I'm ever going to get any taller than this," he gestured a finger at the way his Grandfather had left the room, "Just look at Grandpa! I think being short is in my genes."

"Oh, don't say that," she told him, putting her hands on his shoulders comfortingly, "Just give it another year, okay?"

"Well, as long as no more villains come trying to kill me, I guess all I can do is wait!" The boy replied, a bit surprised at the ease in which she touched him. He had always been really nervous around girls.

She smiled, and then climbed back up on the stool at the counter, motioning for him to join her. "I guess you didn't have breakfast yet?" she said, pushing a plate of already prepared food towards him, and glancing mildly at his pajamas.

The young teen's face turned a bright shade of crimson and he sat down quickly, trying to avoid eye-contact.

Over on the floor, Dedi pushed herself off of her husband, grinning. "So tell me," she said, "How've you been keeping busy while I've been gone?"

Yami sat up, leaning against the back of the sofa, "Defeating Jetsu Maeda for a second time was rather trying, but other than that I've just been catching up on my history while Yugi catches up on his school work."

Dedi nodded, then his words sunk in and she jerked her head up quickly, "What?!" she cried in a half-whisper, scrambling over closer to him, "What are you talking about?? He was back??"

Yami reclined slightly, taken aback by her abrupt reaction, then proceeded to explain the events of the past week or so.

"By the gods…" she murmured, leaning back next to him, "I'm sorry I wasn't there to help…though it seems that everything was under control." She reached out and took his hand, "So now we have a brief moment before the next challenge has to be faced…what do you feel like doing?"

"I feel like resting, but there's no time. The Millennium Statue was sighted at the museum last night by Shadi and I have to find out who owns it. They might be able to shed some light on a few things." Yami rubbed his eyes tiredly, as they looked even worse than ever after the escapades of the previous eve.

"Mmm…" Dedi murmured, "You really do look tired…Why don't you go rest now? The kids won't be ready for more adventures for a few more hours at least. Go on – you deserve it."

Yami shook his head, "No, I have to use this time to figure out what I'm going to say to Barak. His Item is much better at detecting the presence of other Items than either of ours, but the two of us aren't exactly on good terms right now." He stood up and stretched, looking down at his wife with affection, "There aren't enough hours in the day to accomplish everything that needs completion anymore."

She smiled sadly. _'Same old Yami,' _she thought to herself, _'Everything always comes before his own needs…' _She stood up next to him, "Is there any way I can help?"

He leaned forward and kissed her on the cheek, "Go find Seto Kaiba and Vitani. I need to know what happened in her mind last night. Tell him I sent you." Yami disappeared, receding back into his portion of Yugi's mind, trying to figure out something that might possibly sway Barak to help him.

Dedi turned back towards the pair seated at the kitchen counter, talking and laughing together. "Tsuki…" she said, coming up between them, "I hate to break this up, but we have an errand to run. I'll be waiting when you finish your breakfast." 

The young girl nodded and her spirit vanished. "I wonder what sort of errand…" 

Yugi stopped eating for a minute thinking, "I guess this means no Saturday morning cartoons for us."

* * *

Seline had not slept that night. She had sensed the struggle within Vitani's mind, and had been mildly disgusted with the outcome. Now, not only did she not have access to the Shield, but she had wasted her time overseeing the work on the incantation that was to have been her payment for it. As the sun rose slowly above the city skyline, she sat on the window sill in her bedroom, leaning against the glass, silently brooding.

There was a sharp rap at the door, alerting the agitated woman that one of her servants approached. Chalie opened the door, inclining his head slightly, "Apologies for disturbing you, Mistress."

Despite her inner fury, she gave him a small smile. "No need…I think this is the first time you've ever come in here, Chalie. What is it you wanted to say?"

"I simply wondered if this unfortunate turn of events will accelerate our plans further or not. With Maeda gone, reawakening the Shield is no longer an option," Chalie stopped, looking over his shoulder as if apprehensive, "Shem is furious with you. You told him you'd reveal everything to him once the Millennium Shield was yours to control, but that was never really an option, was it? Something has to be done about him."

"Yes…" she nodded, "Once Maeda returned, I had planned to convince him to turn over what knowledge he had of the ancient scriptures – surely the information Shem seeks would've been there. Now that he's gone…I'm not quite sure where else to turn. Maeda's former servant girl would know, but right now she's not in any place to be accepting requests from us." She paused, thinking it over quickly, "How good do you think he is at detecting lies?"

Chalie grinned wickedly, "Probably not bad. There are always other… options. The Mirror would be an excellent power boost to your magic, Mistress." 

"Why do I sense that there will be a slight change in position of the most recent member of our circle?" she asked, "What to you propose?"


	17. Chapter 17 Gathering Intelligence

A Note from the Authors: Um...yeah sorry about the delays in between updates...the lack of enough new TV episodes and the lack of reviews is getting a bit discouraging. Stupid Kids WB...

* * *

Chapter 17

"Gathering Intelligence"

Bakura stiffened slightly as Athena leaned over against him, doubled over with laughter. The two of them were still in their night-things, eating breakfast on the couch and enjoying Saturday morning cartoons. Nick was sleeping through everything, sprawled out on the floor, tangled in a mess of sheets. Diana was observing silently from the kitchen, the Millennium Statue (still very much animated) perched on her shoulder.

"Is it really that funny…?" Bakura asked her.

"Sorry…" she said, resting her head against his arm and unintentionally giving him a very good view down her button-down night-shirt, "I never realized how amusing Japanese cartoons could be…" 

He could only cough and turn away, hoping the television would keep her attention away from his now incredibly red face.

Three rapid taps at front door gave Bakura back any unnecessary embarrassment he might've avoided. As he quickly jumped off of the couch to get the door, he caused Athena to fall over, no longer supported by his shoulder, "Sorry!" he told her, mentally kicking himself for his nervousness.

"That's…okay…" she said, not hurt at all, and enjoying thoroughly the mortified look on his face.

He nodded, hurrying to the door, fiddling with the lock and pulling it open. "Yami!" he said, surprised, "What are you doing here?"

Back in the living room, Athena pushed herself up into a sitting position, as Nick sat up as well, yawning loudly. "Who's here…?" he muttered.

"The Pharaoh," Athena said, brushing her black curls out of her face.

"I need to speak with Barak," Yami told him bluntly, getting straight to the point as he stepped in the apartment, letting Bakura close the door. His eyes darted around the messy home, an amused eyebrow raised, "Am I interrupting anything?"

"N-no! Nothing!" Bakura said quickly, "We just…weren't expecting anyone…this early."

"It's good to see you again, Yami," Athena said, while behind her, Nick attempted to untangle himself from his sheets, "I don't think you've met my siblings yet," she added, gesturing to where Nick would've been had he not just tumbled back onto the floor.

Yami nodded absent-mindedly at the older woman in the background, then towards the red-faced young man on the floor. Finally, he redirected his attention towards Bakura, who was fingering the Millennium Ring out of habit, "Big brother…" the Pharaoh called softly, attempting to find the suspiciously absent spirit of the Ring.

Out of thin air, Barak materialized, leaning against the far wall, dressed in Bakura's pajamas, looking more surly than normal. He glanced up at Yami slowly, _"What do you want?"_ In the background, Nick had finally disentangled himself and taken a seat on the couch beside Athena.

Yami took a deep breath, "I assume that you know that Jetsu has been defeated, yes?"

_"Yes…I was aware of that…I hope you're not trying to take credit for Kaiba's work, though."_

The Pharaoh tensed, but continued, "No, I was not," he decided to press on. He hadn't expected his half-sibling to know as much as this, but it was fine. It would just save him a lot of explaining, "Then were you also aware that the Millennium Statue was at the scene of the battle?"

_"Yes…"_ Barak nodded, _"And, unlike you, I'm aware that the Millennium Statue is in this room at this very moment."_ He pointed towards the kitchen, where Diana was stroking the golden cat, which was lying on the counter.

"I'm sorry if my Item worried you, my Pharaoh," the oldest Icari said, "I was using it last night to watch the conflict at the museum."

"Sorry, Yami," Athena put in quietly, "I probably should have told you about the Statue before, but I never thought of it."

The king of old shrugged, and smiled, "I suppose that takes care of that particular lead," The man stopped, and leaned against the wall thoughtfully, "I had hoped that the holder of the Millennium Statue would have been able to tell me why Maeda turned up at the museum last night. All I have to work on are guesses and vague clues."

The three Grecians exchanged glances and each shrugged. "Vitani might know," Athena said, "I'll probably go over to check on her later today. I could ask her what she knows."

"I've already asked Dedi to go question Kaiba about his encounter last night," Yami told her, "She arrived just this morning."

Barak snorted, a small smirk curling the ends of his lips, _"Good luck."_

Bakura nodded slightly, "Barak may be right, Yami. Kaiba hasn't really seemed to like you much, so I don't know if he'd willingly tell you or yours anything."

Yami sighed, "Then I suppose it's a good thing I have others to depend on," he said, glancing over at Athena, who gave him a small smile, "Kaiba may not be willing to talk, but Vitani will never turn away her sister."

"Even if we learn what Seto Kaiba accomplished yesterday, that still won't help us to determine our next move, will it?" Nick (who had remained quiet through the conversation) spoke up suddenly, his head resting on one hand.

"It just might," Yami said, "If we can come to a conclusion about Seline Chrysogonus' involvement in all of this, we can take adequate precautions in dealing with her."

"It's a start, to say the least," Diana said, and the Statue nodded in agreement.

* * *

It was another long walk back to the Game Shop for Yami, but he felt much better about this one. Between him and the Greeks, they had managed to come up with a decent attack plan. Once they had gathered all of the information they could, Diana would simply send the Statue into the Museum to collect data and help them prepare for whatever Seline might be dragging her feet about.

Lost in his own thoughts, the Pharaoh almost didn't notice a slightly nervous-looking Joey hanging around outside the store. He looked in every so often, reached for the handle to open the front door, then suddenly seemed to change his mind and go back to just leaning against the window. Yami approached him from behind, doubting that Wheeler could hear him, "Hello, Joey."

With a cry of surprise, the blonde-haired teen jumped, spinning around to face Yami, clutching his chest, "Jeez, man…" he said, trying to calm his breathing, "You tryin' ta give me a heart attack?"

"I merely greeted you, as most normal people do. What's gotten into you, Joey? Is something bothering you?" Yami asked, his hands in his pockets.

"Who me??" Joey asked, "No, o'course not…uh – look…can I talk ta Yugi, uh…sir?"

Yami raised an eyebrow, still a bit concerned about his friend. The man closed his eyes quickly, the Millennium Puzzle's glow overtaking him for just a second, and the smiling figure of Yugi Moto appeared in the Pharaoh's place, "Hey, Joey! What's up?"  
"Oh, um…nothin'…" Joey said slowly, "Ya gotta minute?"

Yugi smiled brightly, 'Well, apparently, or I wouldn't be standing here talking to you now would I?"

"Right…" the older boy nodded, smiling weakly, "Um…maybe we could go inside? It's cold out here, ain't it?"

Yugi shrugged, "Yeah, I guess." He opened the door to allow his best friend inside. The boy couldn't help but notice that Joey was acting really weird for some reason. _ It isn't like him to get nervous about anything. I wonder what's up?_

As soon as they entered the shop, Joey froze. Dedi was sitting at the store counter, gazing at him curiously. _She's knows… _instantly crossed his mind, only to be rebuffed by, _She couldn't know…there's no way…so what's wit dat look on her face?_

"Huh? Oh, I forgot to tell you," Yugi said mildly, "Dedi and Tsuki just got into town last night."

"Uh…I gotta go," Joey said, and did a 180 back towards the door, but the younger teen grabbed hold of him.

"What's gotten into you, Joey? I thought you wanted to talk to me," Yugi said, completely puzzled.

Dedi stood up, "I think I'm making _someone _uncomfortable," she said coolly, "I just came by to tell you I had no luck with Kaiba."

"Oh…that's all right," Yugi told her, leading Joey away from the door, "We've got a back-up plan."

"Okay," she nodded, then turned to Yami and whispered, "See you tonight." He met her gaze meaningfully and she left the shop. It was only then that Yugi rolled his eyes. It looked as if he wouldn't get a chance to talk to his spirit about their plans this night.

Yugi sat down behind the counter, looking up at his fidgeting friend, "Ok, we're inside, and we're alone. Can we talk now?"

"Huh? Yeah – yeah…sure…" Joey said, quickly sitting down on the stool where Dedi had been. He put his hands up on the counter, folding them and unfolding them for a few seconds before he got up again and began pacing. "We've…we've been friends for a long time now, right, Yug?" he began.

"Yes, Joey."

"Right…and friends…dey tell each other stuff, right? No secrets, I mean…" the blonde young man continued, slowly repeating his footsteps over their previous spots.

"Yes, Joey. Is this going somewhere?"

The Japanese boy with the Brooklyn accent stopped in his tracks, clutched his head for a moment, moaned loudly and then slammed both hands down on the counter, blurting out, "Mai and I did it last night!"

Yugi fell out of his seat, surprised not only by this outburst but by the content behind it. He got up slowly, his eyes wide, "You mean like…ya know… 'did it'?"

Joey, now as the adrenaline slowly dissolved out of his veins, felt the color rise in his face and he nodded, muttering, "…Yeah…"

"That's kinda early, isn't it? I would have thought that you might've gotten married or something first." Yugi noticed how embarrassed his friend looked, and decided to change his tone, "I'm no Tristan, I know that. So this probably won't sound the same coming from me, but… congratulations. I mean, it's Mai after all."

A small smile crossed Joey's face and he sat back down. "Thanks…" he said, "And yeah…you're right…it was a huge step…I – I don't really know how it happened…one thing just sorta led to another and the next thing I knew…well…maybe I shouldn't go into the details…" he trailed off, resting his chin in his hands, "I just had to tell somebody, or it woulda driven me crazy…"

"I understand," Yugi stated plainly, "I'm glad that you finally feel comfortable talking to be about these things. I'm not a kid anymore, you understand."

"I know…" Joey said, "It's just hard getting' used to. Hell – you're probably more mature now than I'll ever be."

There was silence for a moment between the two. Abruptly, Yugi smiled, "Probably."

* * *

"Vitani..." Kaiba said, "You're sister's here again…Do I have to let her in?"

The Egyptian woman looked up from where she had been resting on the living room couch, and smiled. "Yeah, I guess so."

Kaiba nodded, too weary and still too emotionally strained to really argue, and a short moment later returned with Athena trailing a few paces behind him. The black-haired young woman smiled at the sight of her adoptive sister, "You two don't look so much worse for the wear. How're you feeling?"  
"Tired," Vitani admitted, as Athena sat down beside her on the couch. She noticed Kaiba turn to leave and cleared her throat loudly. When he glanced back at her, she patted the recliner-chair next to the couch. 

He slid into it at her invitation and then turned a stern eye on Athena. "Why exactly are you here again?"

"To check up on you, of course," Athena said, "And to thank you, Kaiba, for keeping your word." She and Vitani exchanged a glance that told Kaiba at once that, without words, Vitani had let Athena in on the secret that he had hoped was their relationship and the color in his cheeks rose. "I also wanted to ask you a couple of questions…" the Grecian added, "about what really happened last night."

"Not this again," Kaiba growled, "Look, I told Yugi's other friend that came around here this morning to get lost, and if Yugi sent you to question me, you can leave now."

"It wasn't just his idea," she protested, "Last night wasn't the end of it. We know Maeda was at the museum last night for a reason, and we need to figure out what it was. This whole thing may be far from over, and the worst thing we could do would be to sit back and pretend that there isn't any problem!"

"Maybe you have a problem, but I've already accomplished what I set out to do. Unlike you, I'm not Moto's lackey, and I'm not going to run around doing whatever he wants me to do." 

"I am _no one's **lackey**!!_" Athena cried, leaping to her feet.

Vitani grabbed hold of her sister's arm, pulling her back down onto the couch. "Both of you stop it, please," she said, giving each a reprimanding look, "You're acting like kids. Kaiba, I don't see what we have to hide from her, or the Pharaoh, for that matter?"

Seto grimaced, "There's nothing to tell. I defeated Maeda, and that's all that matters, isn't it?" his question was directed at Vitani, as questioning Athena would mean certain scarring of his pride.

Vitani nodded, "Yes…but at the end, he said something about that woman who owns the museum now…I'm sure I remember him saying 'tell the Pharaoh'…but it was all kind of fuzzy…what else did he say?"

Kaiba closed his eyes, as if recalling a bad dream, "'Seline Chrysogonus will destroy you for this. Her greed has no bounds, and I promised her riches she had only before dreamt about. Your days are numbered…Tell the Pharaoh for me, won't you?'" he shook his head, looking slightly sick, "I remember it all too well, alright!? Those were his last words to me. I didn't want anyone to know because… well, I was… afraid that you'd run off and try to defeat this woman, whoever she was. You've had more than enough involvement with these people, Vitani." He reached out and put one hand over hers, interlinking his slender fingers with hers, and she met his piercing gaze. Something had changed in his eyes in the past 24 hours; there was a slight shine that had never been there before.

She smiled slightly, "I understand…but you don't have to worry about me. I've had my fill of danger for quite a long time. And I'm not going anywhere if it's not with you." She leaned over and kissed him quickly on the lips. "I love you, remember?"

"Grown-ups are so weird," Mokuba's voice came from the doorway. The boy was leaning against the door frame, an eyebrow raised skeptically, "Weren't you all fighting just a minute ago?"

Athena hid a laugh in a very fake-sounding cough as Kaiba and Vitani separated quickly, both blushing. "Mokuba," Kaiba said, "Weren't you supposed to be doing homework?"

"I finished. It didn't take that long," the younger of the two Kaiba brothers walked into the room and sat down in one of the plump, fluffy, green chairs that sat a short distance from the couch, "Besides, this is much more interesting."

"Too bad we're finished here," Athena said, getting to her feet, "I'll be back, but right now, I've gotta run. Later, kid," she ruffled Mokuba's hair, "Keep these two in-line, okay?" she finished, jerking a thumb at Vitani and Kaiba, causing the latter to flush angrily. With a final wave at them all, she whisked herself out of the room.

Once out in the cold afternoon air again, Athena forced herself to put aside the lingering thoughts of the amusing scene she was surely now missing, and turned her attention to Maeda's last words to Kaiba. It definitely proved that the museum woman was involved, but for Jetsu to feel confident that she'd destroy them was really something to worry about. As she made her may through inner Domino City, she passed the museum itself and toyed with the idea of going in, ultimately rejecting it and continuing on. It would be best to touch base with Yami and Yugi first, so she altered her course slightly and headed for the Game Shop.


	18. Chapter 18 Decisions

Chapter 18

"Decisions"

When Athena arrived at the Game Shop, she found not the Pharaoh, but his vessel, playing video games with Joey. "Hey boys," she said, seating herself down on the living room floor beside them, "How's it going?"

"Fine," Yugi said, not turning away from the television screen, "We'll be with you in a second. Just let me finish this up…"

"What'd ya mean, 'finish this up'!?! I'm comin' back, just you watch!" Joey said, moving his arms and the control in his hands around in erratic motions, his tongue sticking out slightly in concentration.

The younger boy didn't reply, and mere seconds later the screen flashed 'GAME OVER' and Yugi's driver stepped out of his car, cheering. Moto smiled and set down his controller, "There! Now then, how's it going Athena?" Next to him, Joey tossed his controller up in the air in an act of frustration, but it came right back down and conked him on the head.

"Not bad," she shrugged, "I hate to spoil the good mood you're in, but I got a chance to talk to Kaiba a little while ago."

"That'll put anyone in a bad mood," Joey grumbled, rubbing the sore spot on his head, "But a little more misery won't do me any worse, so bring it on."

Yugi couldn't hide the smile that tugged at his lips, his mind finding humor in watching the silly antics of his friend. He decided to focus his attention on the more prominent issue, and looked up at Athena.

"Well…he said he spoke to Maeda last night, and before it was over, he said that the museum woman would be the end of us all…something about her greed being beyond measure," she explained, "I'm sot sure what to make of it all, but it can't be good."

"Hold on, let me get Yami. He should know about this." Yugi closed his eyes and left the physical realm, going to search for his friend inside his head.

"What're we talkin' about here?" Joey asked, completely lost.

* * *

"Thank you, Athena. This information is most appreciated. Diana will be keeping an eye on the museum tonight, won't she?"

"More or less," the Grecian nodded, as she slipped her coat back on, "We'll be sure to let you know if anything interesting happens."

Yami nodded, then turned his head around to look at Joey, who had just tapped him on the shoulder, "I gotta get goin' too, Yug," Joey said, finishing putting his left arm through the sleeve on his jacket, "I'll be seein' ya later!"

The Pharaoh retreated back inside the Puzzle so that his host good bid farewell to his friends properly. "Later guys," Yugi told them as the headed for the door, "And Joey – stay out of trouble, okay?"

The teen grinned as he walked away, waving back at his friend, "Of course! Joey Wheeler can take care'a himself!"

Athena dashed off after the blonde teen, "Now what sort of trouble would Yugi be worried about you getting into?" she asked teasingly.

The young man's face turned a very light shade of pink, and he pulled the collar of his jacket up to conceal this change in coloration, "Punks, thugs, the usual Japanese city stuff. You wouldn't know; you're new 'round here."

"I see…" she said, slipping one arm around one of his, "Maybe you'd better walk me home…so I don't get mugged, you know."

Joey gently pulled her arm off of his, "I'll walk ya home, but I'm already taken, ya got that?"

"Huh?" she said, bemused and then, as it dawned on her that she'd actually been flirting with him she laughed, "Sorry! I didn't mean it to come out sounding like that. I promise I've got my eye on someone else – Mai doesn't have to worry. We can still be friends though, right?"

"Yeah, ya just came on a little fast," he chuckled, surprised at how worried he had gotten.

"Sorry again," she said, grinning, "Growing up in a huge family really takes the concept of personal space out of the daily routine. Feel free to tell me if I ever get too close for comfort."

"I will, don' worry," The two walked the remainder of the way in silence, admiring the light flurry of snow that nature began to set upon the earth as the sun faded from the sky in a brilliant display of orange and red coloring.

* * *

That night, as Yugi settled onto the couch for some quality TV watching before bed, Yami dismissed himself for the evening, making his way quickly to the Shadow Realm, where he knew his queen would be waiting.

And, as he had known, she was there when he arrived; in the special area between their minds that was theirs alone, seated on the elegant Egyptian style bed, wearing a light cotton dress and a smile. She reached out one hand and took hold of his, pulling him down next to her on the bed, where they sat for a long while, nuzzling and whispering to each other how much the other had been missed during their time apart. At last, Dedi began untucking his shirt and he let himself get lost in her soft kisses. So both of them were completely oblivious to a third presence in their midst.

In the distance, Barak watched coldly as his half-brother enjoyed the warmth of love. He too, had once known this wonderful feeling at one time, so many years ago. Tola had been the only person who had ever cared for a thief; the only one to ever feel love for a criminal and an outcast. But it had been probably more than five thousand years in the past. His brother had condemned him to this fate. Doomed to be trapped within the Millennium Ring forever more, to be haunted by his own memories and regret for all eternity. A fate far worse than death.

The wild, white-haired spirit clasped his fists together. It was Yami's fault that he suffered like this. And the foolish man didn't even seem to appreciate how fortunate he was that Maeda's ancestor had trapped Dedi's spirit within the Scale all those millennia ago. The King and the Queen were together again, and the Prince was left to wander the shadows, "Waste your time here as much as you like, my liege. Your love only makes you all the weaker." Barak left the Shadow Realm, heading back to the Millennium Ring. 

Yami may have formulated his plan for dealing with this Chrysogonus woman, but it was time to take matters into his own hands. He could take care of this nuisance by himself. Then Yami would have to admit that he was the best. That it was his right to be known as the Pharaoh. 

It was late when Barak reappeared in Bakura's small apartment. The boy was already asleep, as was the Grecian male and the younger female. The oldest of the three was in the kitchen area, speaking softly to the Millennium Statue. _'Perfect.'_

The spirit of the Ring found his way inside his sleeping host's body and got up, leaving Bakura asleep on his bed. The boy hadn't even bothered to change out of his day clothing.

"Where are you going, Barak?" Diana asked quietly, turning towards him. On the counter, the Statue also turned its emerald eyes on him, blinking slowly.

"I'm going to solve all of our problems." He put his hand on the doorknob and twisted, letting the light of the room out into the quiet, dark hallway.

"You feel you can do that alone?" she responded, running a hand through her long black hair like a brush.

There was silence only for a second, as Barak calmly stepped out into the corridor. He turned around and faced the Grecian woman, his brown eyes fixated upon her with a touch of annoyance, "I know I can." He pulled the door closed and began to walk down the hall towards the stairs. There was one stop he had to make before the museum.

Diana sighed, and then stroked the Statue gently, "Keep an eye on him, won't you? Athena will be most upset if something were to happen to the boy's body." The golden cat rubbed its head against her hand and then leapt down off of the counter, following silently after the Spirit of the Ring.

* * *

The snow-covered ground reflected the full moon nicely, making it easier to see. Not that Egypt's most notorious criminal needed the extra visibility to find the Kame Game Shop. The Millennium Ring glowed brightly and the Egyptian Eye symbol shown gold on the spirit's forehead. He relaxed his mind, allowing the magical energies to flow through his body like the very blood within his veins. With a single leap he managed to catch the second-story window sill to Yugi Moto's room, and then swung himself onto it, crouching. The window was unlocked, a sure sign that his half-brother was still deep within the Shadow Realm. 

Once inside, it took mere seconds to locate the dueling belt that contained the boy's dueling deck. According to legend, only the royal or highest-ranking of Ancient Egypt could control the power of the Gods. Barak had proven this strength once before, about a year-and-a-half ago during the Battle City tournament. The three most powerful creatures sat one next to the other atop the deck. The ancient temple robber could feel the life and power move within the very ink that still contained the most powerful forces of the ancient times.

"Thank you, Yugi," Barak said sinisterly, looking over at the young teen, who was curled up in a fetal position under his blankets, "These are where they should be now." The man pulled out his own Duel Monsters Deck, and pushed three other cards back into Bakura's coat pockets, adding the mighty God creatures. He walked back over to the window and leapt out, leaving the young Moto with the cold night air and his dreams. 

Outside, practically invisible to the unaided eye, a pair of green, glowing, pearly eyes watched from the tree near Yugi's window.

* * * 

"Do you suppose I should go tell her?" Chalie asked, not turning his eyes away from the street outside the tall windows.

Basil looked up from his newly polished Staff, "I'm sure she knows."

"Indeed I do," Seline said, coming through the doorway, "and I'm sure you'll agree that we owe the Pharaoh a proper welcome. Which one of you would like to be the first to greet him?"

Chalie and Basil exchanged looks and then the former suggested, "Let Shem do it."

Seline's eyes lit up. "Not a bad idea." She snapped her fingers and, out from the shadows of the room came the figure of what used to be Shem. Not much had changed about his appearance except for the glowing Egyptian Eye on his forehead and the dulled color of his once vibrant eyes. Seline looked him over happily, "Basil, you'll have to keep an eye on him, just in case the Pharaoh should try to break Chalie's spell over him."

"Of course," Basil bowed and then led the shell of Shem out of the room.

As they left, Seline turned to Chalie, "You'll be preparing to face him on Level Two then?"

"Yes. I have already told you my opinion on this matter: Basil nor the three he now controls have the skills necessary to defeat the Pharaoh or his companions," Chalie stated, opening up a large drawer in his wooden, cluttered desk to reveal a Duel Disk 2. He picked it up and placed it on his arm, going over his Duel Monster cards in his hands, "I shall be ready."

"Excellent," Seline said, "This should prove to be a very fruitful evening." 

* * *

Barak stood alone, the moonlight casting his shadow long and disproportionate to his actual body. The museum's double doors appeared to be locked up tight, but it made no difference. It was time for the Prince of Egypt to settle this conflict once and for all…


	19. Chapter 19 The Third Duel: Rise of a Pri...

A Quick Author Note: Okay, to "BeRzErKeR" - The "little brother" thing is because Barak is filled with distain, and is still incredibly jealous of Yami, so he wants to point out as often as he can that he's the elder of the two. It's an inferiority-complex deal. And Yami just goes along with it, because he doesn't want to cause more problems.

* * *

Chapter 19

"The Third Duel: Rise of a Prince"

Barak stepped inside the Domino Museum, looking around slowly to take in all of his surroundings. The place was completely silent, and much of this level of the museum was dark, obviously shut down for the night. Many years ago, back in his real life, these conditions would have been superb for gathering rare and valuable artifacts from places such as this, but now these things shouted cautionary messages to the Egyptian. The moonlight crept through the glass doors, shining almost perfectly on a Duel Disk 2 that lay mere yards in front of him.

_'I'm expected? Good…'_ He picked up the dueling machine on his way into the darkness of the main auditorium, his footsteps echoing all around him. The stairway at the back of the atrium would be surely the fastest way to get to the Seline woman, so he started towards it, grinning at the prospect of victory so tantalizingly close.

But before he'd reached the first step, flames shot up suddenly from the floor, encircling him at a rapid rate. As he glanced at it, annoyed, a booming laugh came drifting down from the top of the stairs. Illuminated by the flames, Barak could just make out the figure of a tall, slender dark-haired man standing in the ring of fire in front of him. It was a face that one who had spent his life watching the Palace could never have forgotten. "It can't be…Shem…?" he muttered, recognizing the Pharaoh's bodyguard immediately, "What the hell is he doing here…?"

The laugh had not come from the man inside the fire, and Barak saw another figure, this one much more bulky, approaching them both from the top of the stairs. "I'm afraid this is the end of the line, Pharaoh," the newcomer said, "You'll never make it past Level One of The Gauntlet!!"

The Spirit of the Millennium Ring chuckled softly, "Well, thank you for addressing me with my proper title. It is, after all, the right of the first born son to rule. However," He took a step forward, looking up at the large, burly man. The light of the flames made his face more clearly visible, and he watched as the man's expression turned from haughtiness to shock, "I may not be the Pharaoh that you're thinking of. You may call me Barak, Prince of Egypt!"

The shock on the man's face melted into a frown and he replied, "And you may call me Basil, the very disappointed servant of Mistress Seline. You see I was hoping for a real challenge, but the Pharaoh sends his lackeys to do his work for him, or so it seems…"

Barak clenched his fists together angrily, "I do not do my brother's bidding; I am here on my own accord! Your Mistress attempted to resurrect Lord Jetsu Maeda, a move that made no one happy, I can assure you. That man once stole the soul of my host, and for allying herself with him, Seline will meet his same fate at my hands!"

Basil's countenance darkened, "Your business with the Mistress will have to wait," he growled, "You're not going anywhere unless you can get past my slave, here." He gestured at Shem, who remained expressionless, "And with me controlling him, that task will prove quite impossible."

Barak's eyes flared dangerously, and he pushed his dueling deck into the slot, causing the life point counter to begin climbing up to 4000, "I don't care how powerful you say you are. You have absolutely no chance of defeating me in this duel! When this is over, you and your slave will both be begging me for mercy!

Basil snorted, shifting the Staff from one hand to the other, "My mistress has no business with a filthy criminal like you. And when you are defeated your mind will be added to the Gauntlet!" he pointed the Millennium Item at Shem, who's Duel Disk 2 began to power up as well, "Shem, destroy him!"

The wild-haired spirit pulled his six cards out of his duel disk (Spirit Message "H", Dark Spirit of the Silent, Spirit Reaper, Dark Door, Earthbound Spirit, Sangan), "The Millennium Mirror cannot match the powerful of my Item, especially with the spirit of such a pathetic man within it. I'll start this duel by placing one card face-down (Dark Spirit of the Silent) and one monster card in defense mode (Sangan (1000/600))."

The mind-controlled yami did not answer, but merely selected his own hand from his Duel Disk (Bottomless Shifting Sand, Pyramid Turtle, Guardian Sphinx, Pyramid Energy, Dust Tornado, Royal Keeper), "First, I'll place two cards face-down (Dust Tornado/Bottomless Shifting Sand) and summon Royal Keeper (1600/1700) in attack mode," Shem's voice was darkened by the echo that seemed to latch on to each and every word his said, displaying even more clearly than his vacant eyes and expression that his mind was obviously somewhere else for the time being. His monster appeared on the field, a decrepit zombie with tattered clothing and a long, guard's spear.

"Now, I will direct my monster's attack at your face-down card." The undead creature threw its spear forward and then leaped after it. Barak's little Sangan shattered, and the zombie retrieved its weapon.

"Thank you for activating my monster's special ability," The Spirit of the Ring told his opponent as he began to search through his deck, "It allows me to search my deck for a monster with no more than 1500 attack power." The man quickly added (Headless Knight) to his hand.

Shem did not react to this turn of event, but merely placed his hand over the Royal Keeper card and changed its position, "Before I end my turn, I will activate the first of two special abilities my creature possesses: I may flip my monster face-down into defense mode once per turn."

Barak cocked his head amused, "Interesting, but irrelevant," he said, cracking his neck in a bored manner, "No matter how you try to defend you life points you cannot defeat me." Barak picked up the next card on his deck (Death Board) and added it to his growing hand, "Now I'll set one monster face-down (Earthbound Spirit (500/2000)) and end my turn."

"Are you afraid, Thief?" basil called, from the spot where he had not moved from since the beginning of the Shadow Duel, "For all your talk you've done nothing but hide behind your monsters for this entire duel!"

The Dark Prince of Egypt growled low in his throat, but ignored the man for mow. He'd be the first to suffer after Shem was dealt with. Mind-controlled or not, Shem was just an obstacle to the Yami Spirit, "Just make your move, bodyguard."

The Millennium Mirror that had hung limply around the man's neck glowed brightly for a split second, but the glow faded just as quickly as it had come, "I draw one card (Guardian of the Throne Room)," Shem looked down at his new draw, then proceeded to place it on the playing field, "Now, I summon Guardian of the Throne Room (1650/1600) in attack mode!" A short, yellow machine with threads for its legs and small, rickety arms appeared on the field. It didn't look very threatening, until one noticed the large supply of missile strapped to the droid's back.

"Next," Shem stated, taking no time in making his moves one after the other, a bit like a machine himself, "I will flip summon my Royal Keeper back into attack position," The zombie appeared again, standing tall next to the short robot on its left. Suddenly, its stats began to climb upwards. Barak took a surprised step backwards, which made the heat around him intensify.

"What is the meaning of this?"

"When his position is changed in this manner, my Royal Keeper gains 300 extra attack and defense points, which will raise his stats to 1900/2000," Shem picked a card form his hand and placed it on the field, clicking a button on the back of the Duel Disk as he did so, "Next I activate my Dust Tornado trap card, to blow away your magical defense." He paused, letting the purple trap reveal its cyclone of wind that destroyed Barak's Dark Spirit of the Silent, "Finally, I activate Pyramid Energy, to raise my Royal Keeper's attack strength by an additional 200 points."

Basil thrust his Staff towards the slave, causing the Egyptian Eye symbol to glow even more brightly, "Royal Keeper, attack and destroy his monster," Royal Keeper repeated its last attack, crushing yet another one of Barak's monsters," Now, Guardian of the Throne Room, attack my opponent's life points directly."

The parasite of Bakura's body was slammed repeatedly with the deadly barrage of projectiles, bringing the deadly Shadow flames slowly closer, making a tighter space for Barak to work with. Barak: 2350 – Shem: 4000.

Enraged, the Thief watched as Shem switched his Royal Keeper once again, then pulled his next card violently from his deck (Pot of Greed), "I'll activate the magic card Pot of Greed!" The Egyptian tomb robber pulled an additional two cards away from the top of his deck, but stopped before he added them to his hand. His left hand had gone ice cold and his stared at his draw in honest disbelief (Slifer the Sky Dragon/Shallow Grave). Barak threw back his head and laughed, the sound filling the room.

From where he stood on the stairs, Basil snorted indignantly, "What, pray tell, is so funny? Incase you haven't noticed, you have no cards on the field. On his next turn, Shem will attack your life points again, and you will lose this duel!"

"On the contrary, I have plenty of options to insure that that little scenario your tiny brain has come up with will never occur. I hold not one, but two unstoppable forces in my hand at this very moment!" He began to place cards down on the field, one at a time, "I play the magic card Shallow Grave!" A large, pure black coffin with a cross on the top appeared on the field, it opened up to reveal a brown-backed card in face-down defense mode (Earthbound Spirit (500/2000)), "Obviously, this revives one of my monsters already lost from the graveyard. Next, I'll set one card face-down (Death Board) and another monster in defense mode (Spirit Reaper (300/200))"

"These same tactics will get you nowhere!" Basil called, "Hurry and finish this duel, Shem. We have more important people to worry about than this low-life!"

Shem did not respond, but slipped the next slick-backed card from his deck (Magic Jammer), "I set one card face-down (Magic Jammer) and set one monster in defense mode as well (Pyramid Turtle (1200/1400)). Now I'll flip my Royal Keeper up once more," Shem pointed his finger at the first of Barak's face-down cards, "Royal Keeper, attack that monster."

"You've attacked right into my Earthbound Spirit! It has 2000 defense power, so without your pathetic Pyramid Energy to power your monster, Earthbound Spirit can ward off an attack by Royal Keeper!" Barak's card revealed itself, and the two arms that seemed to be clinging to a hole in the ground caught the spear attack in midair, the thrust it right back through the zombie creature. It grunted unexpectedly, then pulled the weapon back out of its chest. Barak: 2350 – Shem: 3900.

Shem's face remained bland, and he pointed at the other face-down card. Guardian of the Throne Room released its powerful attack once more. A cloud of smoke surrounded Barak's side of the field, but when the dust and smoke cleared, a small, evil-looking undead creature clinging to a scythe remained sitting atop its card.

"How is that possible?" Basil shouted in confusion, "That monster is clearly weaker than Shem's machine!

"You're even dumber than you look, you oversized buffoon! Spirit Reaper, under no circumstances, can be destroyed as a result of battle." Barak folded his arms and began to tap his finger irritably. He was wasting time here; this duel had to end soon!

Shem flipped Royal Keeper face-down again, and gestured for Barak to take his turn.

The white-haired male smiled broadly as he clicked a button on his Duel Disk, "By ending your turn, you've triggered my trap card: Death Board!" A large Ouiji Board-type game appeared above Barak's head, the armored hand moving about to find the letter "D".

The Thief smiled at Basil's vacant gaze, "Let me explain this in a way that you might be able to understand: Each time my opponent ends his turn, I am able to add one letter to my deadly message. Once all five letters are on the field, I am granted an automatic win. Now, as Shem ends his turn, I am allowed to search for the second letter from my deck and add it to my playing field!" The hand moved again, this time locating the letter "E". Two floating messenger spirits hovered over their master, displaying plainly the beginning of the word.

"I am activating my trap card: Magic Jammer." Shem said, pressing down on a button behind his trap card. The purple trap revealed itself as a circle with magical text spinning all around it. It absorbed the little demon spirit that was displaying that letter, shrinking it down to nothingness. His duel voice was completely void of any emotion, "By discarding one card from my hand, I am able to negate the activation of your Spirit Message "E" and send it to the Graveyard." He discarded (Guardian Sphinx) from his hand, which left him devoid of cards except for those he had already placed on the dueling field.

"A good move, yes. However, that will only delay your inevitable defeat. I carry three copies of each letter needed for my message in my deck. Now, for my move," Barak looked at the card his had pulled (Change of Heart), "Perfect! I told you I have two unstoppable forces to display. My 'Death' Board is the first one, but I have yet to reveal the second to you!" He snapped the magic card into its slot, "I activate Change of Heart, to take control of your Royal Keeper!" Bakura's favorite card appeared on the field, a half-angel, half-demon creature coming forth from it. 

Instantly, the Royal Keeper card disappeared and reappeared a split second later, now on Barak's side of the field. Barak's placed his two monsters in the graveyard and brought his mighty God card down on the Duel Disk, "I sacrifice all three of my monsters to summon one of the most powerful beasts in Duel Monsters. By the right of the Prince of Egypt, I call you forth Slifer the Sky Dragon (3000/3000)!" The instant he slapped the card down on its slot, the Duel Disk exploded in light and out from the card flew none other than the fierce red beast itself, snapping at the air with both mouths and roaring at the top of its lungs.

Barak raised a hand towards it triumphantly, cackling madly. On the other side of the field, Shem's Mirror was glowing once again, and his right eye was twitching. But Barak took no notice because Slifer, in finding itself not summoned be its regular master, had taken to lashing about the arena, angry and confused. "Calm down, you foolish creature!!" Barak yelled at it, "I command you to recognize your new master at once!" 

Slifer turned towards him, eyes flashing dangerously, and then lowered its head quickly to his level. Barak stood completely still as the dragon circled him curiously. "The blood of the Pharaoh runs in my veins also," he told it, "I am just as worthy as he to triumph with your aid." At last, Slifer appeared satisfied and settled itself into attack position, waiting for the word to unleash its fury. "Excellent," Barak said, smirking, "Now, where was I?" He turned back towards the field and his expression changed dramatically. Across from him, Shem was writhing and moaning, clutching his head while the Egyptian Eye symbol flickered on and off of his forehead. Above them both on the stairs, Basil was looking furious, still pointing the Staff at the Pharaoh's loyal bodyguard. "Well, well, well…" Barak chuckled, "Seems the ape isn't as skilled of a mind controller as I mistook him for. Slifer, finish this duel."

The serpentine dragon opened its first mouth wide, releasing a huge white energy blast that soared across the field first blasting Guardian of the Throne Room to bits, then knocking the still struggling Shem to the floor, and finally hitting Basil square in the chest, sending him flying backwards up the stairs. As the smoke cleared, Barak watched as Shem picked himself up off the ground, looking dazed. The Eye was no longer on his forehead and his eyes were clear. He turned towards Barak and spoke his name.

"Shem?" the Spirit of the Ring inquired curiously, "I suppose it was this creature that helped bring you to your senses?" He jerked a finger upwards at where Slifer was hovering, still twisting and snarling at Shem.

"Yes…" the dark-haired man nodded, "I never thought I would be indebted to the notorious Temple Raider, yet here I am, and I must thank you for resurrecting my memories."

"I did wonder why you would be working for this Seline woman, when a bodyguard's place is normally at his master's side," Barak folded his arms once more, thoughtful now, "Before I tell you where the Pharaoh is currently located, there's still the matter of this duel." The Thief raised an eyebrow, waiting to see what Shem's decision would be.

"Yes…it does seem rather pointless now," Shem agreed, placing his hand over his deck, bringing the duel to an end. The fires that surrounded both of them flared upwards then died out, no longer fueled by the power of the Millennium Staff. He glanced up at where Basil lay, still unconscious. "We should leave now, before he wakes up."

Barak walked over to Shem slowly, placing his cards back in his dueling deck from the Duel Disk, "What do you mean, 'we'? There is no 'we', I'm afraid. This is where we part ways; I will go on to Level Two, and you are going to go out the front entrance. I expect the Pharaoh might want someone to tell him that this Seline character was taken care of."

Shem frowned, "You have not told me where I may find him."

The Prince of Egypt began to climb the stairs, moving on to the next level, "He resides in the Kame Game Shop," Barak called over his shoulder, "His host is a young boy named Yugi Moto."

The Pharaoh's bodyguard nodded and headed for the door, pausing only for a split second to glance back inside, then shook his head and continued out into the night. His loyalties were first and foremost to the Pharaoh, no matter how well the Thief could control the Gods. 


	20. Chapter 20 The Fourth Duel Servants of t...

Chapter 20

"The Fourth Duel: Servants of the Ernten"

"I told you he could not defeat the Pharaoh, but this is worse than I anticipated," Chalie stated, watching Barak make his through the second floor. On a smaller screen around the largest one there was a close-up on Barak's left hand, which was clutching loosely the Millennium Staff. Another screen flashed images of an unconscious Basil and Shem's abandoned, deck-less Duel Disk 2, "I have no doubts about my dueling skills. I will meet him at Level Two."

Seated as usual in her high-backed chair, Seline had undergone a sort of transformation. A vein was pulsing out of control on her temple and the Egyptian Eye symbol burned bright neon green on her forehead. Her right eye was twitching slightly and her face was illuminated by the glow of the mysterious gold earrings she always wore. "Yes…" she said quietly, with a great effort to control the tone of her voice, "Do that…"

Chalie grunted softly and closed his eyes. His hyper-sensitive magical presence was becoming greatly disturbed by this alarming energy Mistress Seline was emitting, "I shall defeat him, Seline. Now is neither the time nor the place for rash actions. I will salvage what I can from this situation and with any luck, we'll replace the lost Mirror with another Millennium Item." He stood behind her chair a moment longer. If she were to lose control, his natural-born protection would aid him in restoring his Mistress to her usual state.

She nodded, breathing deeply, gripping the arms of her chair, willing herself to calm down. After a moment, when she realized she would not succeed on her own, she held up one hand towards her lone faithful servant, pleading, "Help me, Chalie."

He grimaced, almost imagining the pain to come. Bravely, the man clasped his hand upon hers, and a blind rush of agonizing pain and wild green energy coursed through Chalie's body. Such was the life of an Ernten, or roughly translated from his ancestral German, "Collector" or "Gatherer". A magically-absorbent being, possessors of great magical power or wielding such Items could have some or all of their powers stripped away with a single touch. It was a calculated risk with each contact, as too much energy would overload the being's system, obviously a fatal mistake to make. He let go quickly, the Eye symbol no longer apparent on his Mistress's forehead. He clutched his bleeding right hand, several burn-type marks sketched across it, "If I'm to make Level Two, I must go. Rest, for now."

As he swept out of the room, she looked down at her own hand, marked with his blood, and then covered her face with both hands to hide her tears.

* * *

Barak glanced down at the Millennium Staff he had taken from the oaf again, feeling his magical energies surge upwards with this small addition to his power. It was a good feeling, claiming the spoils of war. If the second level duels of this museum were anything like that of the first level, this conflict would be over even more quickly than he had anticipated.

As he reached the large arched doorway leading into the main arena of Level Two, he could see a spotlight in the center of the room, shining down on one tall figure flanked by two smaller ones. Barak was mildly surprised as he drew closer to make out the familiar faces of Rex Raptor and Weevil Underwood standing one either side of the taller man. 

"Welcome, Thief," the man said calmly, "We've been expecting you…haven't we boys?" He glanced down at each of the young teens, neither of whom reacted at all.

"Apparently Ms. Chrysogonus has been busy," The Spirit of the Ring remarked, eyeing the two younger duelists for just a split second before turning his full attention to the cloaked figure, "Two of the Pharaoh's friends disappeared over a week ago. I assume they now reside here somewhere?"

Chalie smiled grimly, "You're not as ignorant as you appear," he said, "But they are not your concern now – these two beside me are who you must worry yourself with."

Barak smirked, folding his arms across his chest, "Do you really expect me to waste my time with these two? Or is it that you are afraid I'll do to you what I did to the one that held this?" The white-haired man brought the Staff up and pointed it at Chalie, a golden glow surrounding Barak faintly.

"I do not fear the Staff," Chalie said, his expression turning cold, "Or any magical item, for that matter. You will find your newly acquired powers quite useless here."

The Spirit of the Ring raised an eyebrow, confused, "False threats don't frighten me."

"False, you say…?" Chalie said, one eyebrow raised, he waved his heavily bandaged hand over the heads of the two boys and they each activated their Duel Disks, "We will see exactly what is truth and what is falsity here tonight."

Barak's Duel Disk 2 clicked and beeped as it counted up to 4000 life points, "I'll make the first move; I can't waste my time with these two. There are bigger fish to fry here…" He looked down at his six cards (Dark Necrofear, Kishido Spirit, Whiptail Crow, The Portrait's Secret, Bark of Dark Ruler, The Puppet Magic of Dark Ruler) and began to place several of them down on the field, "First, I set one face-down (Bark of Dark Ruler). Then I'll play the magic card Kishido Spirit!" 

Out of the card rose a translucent knight in shining silver armor and blue cape, holding a long sword in one hand. He floated up above the field and positioned himself there, watching the action with mild interest. "Whenever any of my monsters are attacked, if their attack powers are equal, then my creature will survive the struggle," Barak explained calmly, watching the knight, "For my last move, I summon the Portrait's Secret (1200/1500) in attack mode and end my turn."

* * *

Yugi Moto awoke suddenly, not sure as to what purpose. He blinked twice, then glanced over at his clock. _2:38 AM…The wind must have woken me up. I was sure I closed that window…_ The boy got up, his bare feet regretting every touch of the frigid carpet. As he made to shut the window, an unfamiliar figure appeared within the frame, having hoisted itself up as if on cue to bring itself nearly nose-to-nose with the young teen. With a cry of fright and surprise, Yugi fell over backwards, scrambling towards the door. "Wh-who are you?? What do you want??" he stammered.

The figure slipped in through the window, then turned and shut it. "It is unwise to keep this open during such cold months," said a mature voice that told Yugi the figure was male, "Better men than you have died of pneumonia from carelessness such as this."

"I didn't mean to leave it open, I mean- I didn't- Who are you?" Yugi stammered, tripping over his words as he tried to defend himself from the accusation whilst realizing that he wasn't the one breaking-and-entering. He took several steps backwards, hands fumbling behind him on his desk attempting to locate his Millennium Puzzle.

"You are Yugi Moto, are you not?" the man turned and for the first time Yugi's eyes had adjusted enough to let him make out the face. It was one he vaguely recognized, but could not place, with dark eyes and long hair pulled back at the nape of his neck. "The host of the Pharaoh Yami?"

"Yes…" he replied curiously, finally grabbing his Puzzle. Yugi Moto placed the Millennium Item around his neck, and then closed his eyes. When the spirit of the Pharaoh did not present itself to him, Yugi sighed. Yami was probably 'preoccupied' right about now. That figured, "Look, whoever you are, if you want to talk to Yami you might have to come back in the morning. He's kinda busy right now." The boy hoped that this would be enough of a hint. Dwelling on this subject for too long was sure to cause some nausea.

"Busy?" Shem cocked an eyebrow, "Do you mean the spirit of the Queen remains in this realm as well?" It had to be her – the Pharaoh would never betray his queen.

"Yes."

The older man nodded, "I see…well, the news I bring them cannot wait until morning. I shall seek them out myself."

"But, they're not here!" Yugi stated, shaking his head, "They're in the Shadow Realm!"

"I have realized that," the man said, "Besides, it will not be the first time I have interrupted them," he added with a wry smile. Then he closed his eyes and the mirror around his neck glowed for an instant. In its light, Yugi watched as the face changed to one a few years younger, then the host of this new spirit collapsed, unconscious on the floor.

The boy sighed. He would probably have a lot of explaining to do (if not to this boy, then to his grandpa) in the morning. But this, he decided, was not morning yet (despite what his clock tried to tell him). Very calmly and quietly, Yugi Moto climbed back into his bed and pulled the covers up over his head.

* * * 

Rex Raptor slipped his sixth card out of his deck (Mad Sword Beast, Gilasaurus, Megazowler, Meteorain, Big Bang Shot, Gray Wing), "I set one face-down (Metoerain) and summon Mad Sword Beast in attack mode (1400/1200)." There was, like Shem, a total lack of emotion and feeling in everything the normally fiery dinosaur duelist did, "Attack now, Mad Sword Beast."

"I'm activating my trap card: Bark of Dark Ruler!" Barak pressed a button on his Duel Disk and his lone face-down card revealed itself. A green-skinned face bedecked with a red and gold headpiece pulled itself through the cardopening its mouth and absorbing energy out of the attacking Sword Beast, "By sacrificing 200 of my life points, I can lower your attack power down to 1200! And thanks to my Kishido Spirit, when our monsters clash, only yours will be sent to the grave!" The blue-caped knight stepped in front of the haunted picture frame and took the hit. 

Chalie (who had taken several steps back to watch the duel) sighed, "You had better start thinking you moves out more carefully, Thief! That move may have saved you in a one-on-one with Mr. Raptor, but now…" The man gestured to Weevil, who drew a card from his deck to start his turn.

Underwood gazed at his cards with little interest (8-claws Scorpion, Flying Kamikiri #1, Girochin Kuwagata, DNA Surgery, Laser Cannon Armor, Insect Imitation) then placed one down on the field, "I summon Girochin Kuwagata (1700/1000) in attack mode." The mauve-armored, beetle-like creature rose out of the card, pincers clicking angrily. "Next, I'll place one card face-down (DNA Surgery) and equip my monster with Laser Cannon Armor, raising my monster's attack and defense by 300." A large, futuristic cannon appeared as armor and a weapon for the new creature, focused only on one arm.

The insect master pointed at Barak, the scarab pendant around his neck glowing slightly, "Attack The Portrait's Secret and damage my opponent's life points." The little insect leapt forward, blasting the picture and shattering it into thousands of tiny dust particles. Barak: 3200 – Rex/Weevil: 4000/4000.

Barak's nostrils flared at Chalie's last remark, but he ignored him and selected another card from his deck (Reckless Greed), "I set one card face-down (Reckless Greed) and summon Whiptail Crow in attack mode (1650/1600)!" In a rush of blue wind, the creature appeared, standing upright, its entire body covered with fine, sheet-like red feathers that dissolved into green scaled on its clawed hands and feet. Its pupil-less blue eyes narrowed and it spread its wings aggressively, letting out a shrill cry through its pointed beak.

The ancient cat burglar smirked to himself, "Now, attack Rex Raptor and take a bite out of his life points!" The bird-like creature rushed ahead and attacked the boy directly, knocking over the mind-controlled slave. Barak: 3200 – Rex/Weevil: 2350/4000.

Chalie reached out a hand and caught the boy before he fell completely, pushing him back to his feet, "You will find that mind-slaves are not discouraged like a self-conscious opponent would be. It will take more that that to dampen their spirits – seeing as their souls are no longer a part of them."

Barak frowned, "It makes little difference to me. Either way, I will defeat them," he studied his hand for a moment, giving the monster on Weevil's side of the field a concerned glance, "Before I end my turn, I will play a magic card: The Puppet Magic of Dark Ruler!" The same green-skinned creature sank through the ceiling, long-nailed hands stretched out towards the field. Red energy shot from its fingers and engulfed the Whiptail Crow. "This allows me to send my monster to the graveyard to revive another of the same star level!" Instantly, the Whiptail Crow disappeared, only to be replaced by The Portrait's Secret, now in defense mode.

Rex pulled out another card from his deck(Kabuzuals), "First, I choose to special summon Gilasaurus in attack mode (1400/400)," The small, brown-skinned dinosaur appeared on the field, snarling and snapping at the possessed picture frame, "This allows my opponent to special summon one monster from the graveyard if he wishes to do so."

Barak immediately pulled the few cards in his graveyard out, then played the Whiptail Crow card back on his Duel Disk, in defense position. Rex nodded slightly, then continued with his turn, "Now, I sacrifice my monster to summon Megazowler (1800/2000) in attack mode," The smaller dinosaur monster disappeared in a bright flash of light and was replaced by the larger, meaner-looking Megazowler.

Raptor pointed a finger at his opponent, "Attack his Portrait's Secret now." The large ancient reptile trampled the weaker fiend monster, sending it to the graveyard.

"It doesn't make a difference to me," Barak said, looking past his two opponents and into the eyes of their controller, "With every monster they destroy I grow stronger!"

Chalie raised an eyebrow, "Really? Then why are your life points decreasing?"

"What?" the white-haired man asked, staring at his Duel Disk in disbelief.

"I activated my trap card, Meteorain," the dinosaur duelist's purple-rimmed trap revealed itself, showering the field with large meteorites, "For one turn if my monster has a higher attack power than the opposing monster's defense points, the difference is inflicted to your life points." Barak: 2900 – Rex/Weevil: 2350/4000.

Weevil pulled another card from his deck (Insect Barrier), "Activate magic card: Insect Barrier," Thousands of tiny, golden lights wormed their way around the dueling field, forming a barrier between Barak and his two opponents, "No insect monsters on your side of the field may attack as long as my magic card remains on the field," the boy placed another card down on his duel disk, "Next, I'll lay one card in defense mode (Flying Kamikiri #1 (1400/900)) and use my Kuwagata to destroy your last defense." Whiptail Crow shrieked in pain as the small insect blasted it into millions of tiny pieces, then silence overtook the room once again.

"If you're quite finished," the yami spirit of the Ring said huffily, "I'll make my move," he drew (the Cheerful Coffin), then pressed down a button on his Duel Disk, "I activate my trap card, Reckless Greed!" The trap showed itself, signaling Barak to draw again, "This allows me to skip my next two draw phases in order to get those two cards right now!"

He smiled past his opponent's, looking right at Chalie, "After all, there's no need for me to waste any more time here than I need to," he selected his next two cards quickly (Death Board, Dark Ruler Ha Des), grinning almost savagely, "I activate a magic card, The Cheerful Coffin!" In front of his field, a huge, black sarcophagus took shape, "This card allows me to send up to three monsters from my hand to the card graveyard!"

Chalie snorted, "Defeating yourself would hardly seem like a decent idea, since you have no monsters on the field," he started, watching as the coffin disappeared, "What are you planning, Thief?"

Barak smiled, "Now that I have three fiends in the graveyard, I may remove them from play," the Prince of Egypt pulled his three monsters out of the graveyard and slapped another card down on the field, "I may summon the Dark Necrofear (2200/2800) in attack mode!" The blue-skinned, slightly-feminine/slightly-robotic creature rose in a whirl of black energy, its pupil-less eyes glinting in the dim light of the room.

* * * 

It did not take Shem long to locate the Pharaoh and his queen, and despite his regretful familiarity with the scene he could not shake the feeling of awkwardness as he drew nearer to the bed. Putting a fist up to his mouth, he cleared his throat loudly.

Out from the tangled mess of sheets and limbs came a string of muffled curses and the two bodies separated, Yami turning over onto one side to see who dared intrude on them, while Dedi pulled the sheets up tightly around her. Both sets of eyes opened wide in disbelief as they came to rest on the figure of their bodyguard. "It can't be…" Yami said slowly.

"Shem???" Dedi said, "What are you–? How did you–?"

"It's a long story, and perhaps you would like to dress before hearing it?" he suggested.

Dedi blushed, and nodded. _He certainly hasn't changed, _she thought to herself as she reached for the dress she had tossed on the floor, _He always did have a knack for showing up at just the wrong times._

* * *

The dark spirit of the Ring chuckled, his cheeks muscles pulling his mouth into a wide, almost crazed smile, "Necrofear, attack and destroy that pathetic little insect!" The mighty creature widened its eyes, unleashing a blast of energy towards the smaller bug-type monster.

Weevil Underwood pressed a button down on his Duel Disk, activating his face-down card, "My trap, DNA Surgery, will change every monster on the field into an insect-type, making my Insect Barrier a completely effective wall against all attacks." The red beam impacted against the barrier, sending up a whirlwind of dust and dirt, but keeping the creatures behind it safe from harm. Both Necrofear and Megazowler let out roars of confusion, sprouting plate-like armor and antennae.

Barak growled softly, "No matter. Now I place one card face-down (Death Board) and end my turn."

Rex pulled his next card out (Mystical Space Typhoon), "I activate the magic card Mystical Space Typhoon."

Barak's eyes went wide. Without Death Board, winning the duel would be a much more complicated matter. He moved to discard the trap, when he heard Raptor's voice again.

"I choose to send your Kishido Spirit to the graveyard," the lightning bolt directed its course towards the face-up green-backed card. It smashed the knight hovering over it into thousands of tiny pieces.

Chalie took a deep breath and let it out slowly. It was a decent choice, but the face-down card had him much more worried. It was the rash action of a child.

The dinosaur duelist placed another card on the field, then pointed with his free hand at Barak's lone monster, "I will now equip Megazowler with the magic card Big Bang Shot, raising its attack to equal that of your Necrofear. Attack it, and clear the way for my partner's monsters." The two insect creatures clashed for an instant, before they shattered themselves. 

The spirit of the Ring beamed proudly, sending his Necrofear to the graveyard, "Thank you," a translucent image of his lost monster hovered over Weevil's Girochin Kuwagata, "Not only have you just given me control of the strongest monster on the field, but you've triggered my trap card: Death Board!" The large ouiji appeared over the field and a single little ghost popped out, holding a large 'D' in its hand.

Chalie raised a questioning eyebrow, "Explain yourself, thief."

The former tomb robber stuck his nose in the air, "When destroyed, my Dark Necrofear allows me to take control of one of the monster on my opponent's field. And since I have two opponents, my options are quite vast."

"And the trap?"

Barak held up five fingers, "I need all five letters of my message to automatically win this duel. At the end of my opponent's turn, I get one letter. But since there are two opponents facing me," his eyes narrowed dangerously, "I think you get the picture.

Rex set the second to last card in his hand down, "I'll place one monster in defense mode (Gray Wing (1300/900)) and end my turn." Another ghost appeared out of the ouiji board; clinging to a large letter 'E'. Both letters now floated above the insect that had taken Necrofear's place on Barak's side of the field.

Weevil drew his card (Bombardment Beetle), "I end my turn."

Barak was laughing in triumph, "And that makes three! Since I cannot draw this turn, I'll end my turn as well." D-E-A

Rex Raptor pulled his next card, folded his arms and motioned to Weevil to draw. The fourth letter appeared off of the ancient game board, causing Barak to sneer at the puppet master behind his dueling servants, "Do you understand my message now?" he asked cruelly, pointing up at the board, "I am Barak, the Prince of Egypt!" A golden aura began to course rapidly around the dark yami spirit, "And my will cannot be stopped by the likes of you!"

Weevil drew, his emotions long since drained from his body. A puppet could not care. Not even about the fate of itself or any of its former friends. He made no move to play any cards, "I end my turn."

"And I add the last letter to my Death Board! Victory is mine!" The spirits clutching the letters let them fall to the floor in a cloud of mist and surged forward, emitting an ear-splitting shriek. They swirled around the mind-controlled teens before opening their mouths wide and swooping over top of them, as if swallowing them whole. As one, Rex and Weevil crumpled to the floor, even more lifeless than before.


	21. Chapter 21 Fall of a Prince

Author's Note: We apologize for any strangeness there may be with spacing, formatting, etc. Both Microsoft Word & FrontPage were not cooperating this morning. Also, if there are things that should be in italics (i.e. thoughts, spirits speaking, etc.) this is again, a by product of Word's temper tantrum that it seems to be throwing on all computers in our house. 

* * *

Chapter 21

"The Fall of a Prince"

Seline could feel her blood pounding in her ears again. It was returning.the bright green Egyptian Eye was reappearing on her forehead as her screens flashed over and over images of the Tomb raider's second triumph that evening. Her breathing became heavy and her nails tore into the plush armrests of her chair. The pounding.she had to stop it.or it would drive her mad. She needed Chalie.she couldn't handle it on her own any longer. It had been growing worse ever since Jetsu had left the realm of the mortals. She stood, staggering towards the door, the Egyptian Eye searing her forehead, her head throbbing with pain. 

* * * 

Barak's Duel Disk powered down silently, and he slipped the gaming machine off of his sweaty arm, "I have a feeling I won't be needing this anymore," He told Chalie, who had ignored the fall of his servants and moved to position himself between the stairs to the top level of the museum. The Millennium Ring began to glow a bright golden color, beginning to renew the strength Barak had lost during his two duels. The former thief thrust his newly-acquired Staff (that had been sitting at his feet since the start of the duel) towards Chalie, "You realize you cannot possibly hope to match me. Step aside now and I may let you retain your mind." 

"You realize that I cannot possibly let you by so easily," Chalie said, "An audience with my mistress is a difficult privilege to acquire." 

"Then have a pleasant stay in the Shadow Realm. I'm sure there are several minds you've trapped there to keep you company!" The Staff's tip exploded with energy, a tremendous beam of golden light directed itself towards the servant of Seline Chrysogonus. 

Chalie smirked and raised both hands, catching the blast. In an instant, the golden energy vanished into his palms. The heavy bandages on his right hand fell off in singed scraps and underneath, his hand was completely uninjured. "Thank you," he said, rubbing his hands together, "That felt wonderful. I hope now you begin to comprehend my powers." 

Barak's eyes widened, bewildered, "What are you?" He asked in amazement. 

It was not Chalie who answered him, but a familiar female voice. "An Ernten." They both glanced up the stairs to see Seline descending them, the green Eye burning brightly on her forehead, a small smile on her lips. "One of the last of his kind, and virtually indestructible in battles of magic. You would've done well to surrender yourself at Stage One, street rat." 

Barak folded his arms, dropping the Millennium Staff at his feet, "It would appear an audience is not so difficult to gain, Ernten." He began to chuckle slightly, eying the slight woman, "So this is the mighty Seline Chrysogonus. This is what has that idiot Shadi and my fool of a brother so worried??" The man threw back his head and roared with laughter, the sound filling the large room and echoing around on the walls. 

Seline drew herself up right in front of Barak, the top of her head barely reaching his shoulders. Her smile never faltered, "I fail to see the humor in any of this." 

He stopped laughing, a wide smirk upon his face, and looked down at the woman, "Than you obviously have no sense of humor. What's laughable is thinking that you are any threat to someone of my magical abilities," He moved one hand to push her away, "Once I finish off your servant, I'll deal with you." 

In a blur of movement, the heel of her palm made contact with his face and he was flung backwards, skidding across the marble floor. "You will find I am quite the threat, rat."

Barak sat up quickly, rubbing his chin, "Little nuisance." He stood slowly, then placed his hands around the outline of the Millennium Ring, fingers spread wide. A blast of magical energies was released, reflecting in his brown eyes and making them appear golden themselves. 

As the blast approached her, she batted it away as if it were nothing. Then she waved a hand over the Millennium Item at her feet and it shot up into her grasp. "Pathetic fool," she spat, pointing the Staff at him, "You should have stayed down. I will enjoy causing you pain." The discharge from the Millennium Staff was a sickly green color, but came forth nearly twice as large as the one Barak had released. 

The Spirit of the Ring leapt away, not willing to meet the blast head-on. Instead of flying past him and colliding with the stairs down to Level One, the energy changed direction in mid-air and smashed into the yami spirit. The force of the resulting explosion slammed Barak through several glass display cases before meeting with the solid tile wall. He landed hard on the ground, flat on his back. Barak gasped in pain, unable to believe the intensity of the energy beam. 

"Do you realize now how far in over your head you are?" she asked, her high heels clicking softly on the floor as she crossed the room towards him, green energy still swirling at the tip of the Staff.

From his spot near the stairs, Chalie raised a worried eyebrow. Thousands of dollars worth of archeological finds had just been destroyed, but Seline simply tread over her possessions as if they were worthless children's toys. Something was wrong here. Perhaps not on the surface, but he had better make sure the situation didn't get too out of hand. 

Barak stood, too angry to care about the tiny shards of glass that made his arms wet with several separate trickles of blood. He fired another blast from the Millennium Ring, not waiting to see if it would make contact. The spirit of the Ring ran after it, intent on getting one good shot at her head while she attempted to stop his first attack. 

She lifted the Staff to block his first blast and than raised her free arm to catch his fist as it came at her head. Her expression cold, she twisted his arm in a way it should not go and then rammed her knee into his stomach. 

Barak cried out in pain as his right arm went limp at his side and went down hard, clutching his stomach. How was he being beaten so easily? Was there really that much more to this woman than could be seen on the surface? He could almost hear the mocking laughter of his half-brother, the so-called mightiest of the Pharaohs, within the lonely chambers of his mind. 

"It ends now, filth," Seline said, raising his chin up with the tip of the Staff, "Time for you to die." 

His eyes widened, fear etched across his face. Barak released an attack from his Millennium Ring at point blank range, kicking up dust all around the two. When the smoke cleared, he realized with disgust that the cold touch of the Millennium Staff had not removed itself. Seline smiled down at him, not affected in the least. 

"Mistress," came Chalie's voice as he calmly approached the pair, "Need I remind you that this was not our planned fate for the thief." He placed a hand on her arm and the Egyptian Eye flickered on her forehead until it was gone completely. "We had uses for him yet, did we not?" 

She shook herself as if out of a dream and then nodded. "Yes, Chalie, I'm sorry.you're right." She turned back to Barak, "Looks like you've been spared for now, rat," she told him, "Enjoy your stay in the Shadow Realm." A quick shock wave shot out from the Staff and engulfed him. 

The Prince of Egypt crumpled to the ground, his mind now dimensions away. High above the three, sitting on a window sill, a small, golden cat turned and leapt from its spot, beginning its long trek back to its master. 

* * * 

Diana hung her head and waved a hand through the orb floating in front of her, causing it to dissipate into thin wisps of smoke and vanish. After a few moments of silence, she turned tear-filled eyes towards the sleeping spirit of Bakura. _'And so the Prince falls.and what will become of his host now.?'_ she thought sadly, _'How long will his spirit be able to sustain itself without his body.?'_ She stood slowly, _'The Pharaoh should know of this.'_

Her hand was barely on the handle of the door when there was a knock upon it. She opened it and came face to face with a young man she did not recognize. He was flanked by the spirits of the King and Queen of Egypt. Yami looked relieved, "We were not sure anyone would be up at this hour," he told her, "Diana -was it?"

"Yes, my Pharaoh, it was," she nodded, gesturing them into the apartment, "And may I inquire as to who this is?" 

Dedi answered her, "This is Shem, our bodyguard back in the days we were living. He comes to us having escaped the servitude of the Seline woman. He left Barak in the museum a short while ago - has he returned here?" 

"No," Diana shook her head, "And he will not return of his own accord." 

Shem cursed in Egyptian, "She's taken him." 

"She has," Diana nodded, "I watched it.and I do not wish to recount the details as of yet. At the moment, my main fear is for Bakura's spirit." 

"Should we awaken him?" Yami wondered aloud, gazing at the sleeping spirit. 

"I am afraid to." Diana admitted, "I would not know how to comfort him." 

"Why is he not with Barak?" Shem asked, befuddled. 

"Barak left him behind when he went out tonight," Diana said, "As I'm sure you have done with your host, when you feel the situation may be too dangerous." 

"The very reason Yugi is not here. I did not wish to disturb him so late." Yami said, nodding in agreement with Diana. 

Shem took a moment to respond to Diana, not meeting her eye, "My host has no knowledge of my existence. I do not leave him, rather 'take over' control of the body when I feel the situation calls for such." 

"Which, as of late, has probably been quite often I expect?" the Grecian woman guessed, eyebrows raised. 

"Actually, I have only just recently returned to this body. I may only hope that Todd will return when I relinquish control," coming upon this embarrassing subject, Shem looked at his feet, "I was an unwilling servant of Seline ever since Jetsu's destruction." 

Yami put a hand on his old friend's arm, "I'm especially glad that your memories returned before your host was placed in danger. But I feel that the time is growing ever closer that you should reveal yourself to him. He is surely troubled, as our hosts have been in the past, at his unpredictable lapses in memory." 

Shem merely nodded, "I will.but not tonight. It is too late, and this body is wearing down. You look as if you could use some rest as well, my Pharaoh. Perhaps sleep would be a better use of your nightly hours this evening." The bodyguard smirked at his master, wondering how well this statement would go over with the Queen.

Dedi frowned, "We'll leave you then. Diana, it won't be a problem to keep him here for a little while, will it? We need him to keep a low profile for the moment." 

Diana shrugged, "I do not think one extra guest will make much difference. I will not turn him away, but it should be discussed with Bakura in the morning." 

"Indeed," Yami agreed, "We'll be back tomorrow. I'll have Yugi call to let you know the exact time." He kissed Dedi softly on the cheek and told her, "That goes for you as well, my love." 

"Very well," she said resignedly. With a final nod to Shem and Diana, both spirits vanished. 

"I'm sorry," Diana said after they had gone, "But sleeping space is limited here.the floor is really all that's left." 

"Getting to sleep at night instead of guarding the Pharaoh is still a well-appreciated new privilege. The location matters not to me." 

"Yes, I see." she said, kneeling down as the Millennium Statue appeared through the front door and climbed up onto her shoulder, "Well.make yourself comfortable. Morning will be here much too soon." She made her way back over to her own sleeping bag on one of the couches and settled into it. The golden cat curled itself up on her pillow next to her head. 

Shem sighed, looking out at the horizon, where a faint change in the clouds' coloration began to betray the early signs of a morning to come, "Indeed." 


	22. Chapter 22: Dreams Part 1 Perfection

A Note From the Authors: ::sigh:: Judging from all the reviews of the previous chapter, no one really understood what happened, so we're going to explain it. Did anyone notice how Seline was in agony up in her main office, weak and needing Chalie? Then in the next scene she was cool, calm, collected, and had the Green Millennium Eye symbol on her forehead? The Millennium Earrings (her Item) affected her so badly that they produced almost a yami-Seline (obviously more powerful than the normal one), who was merely Seline under their mental influence. We hope that clears some things up. On with the story.

* * *

Chapter 22

"Dreams, part 1: Perfection"

Bakura yawned as he sat up the next morning, rubbing the sleep from his eyes. The sun was filling the small apartment and as he wandered into the kitchen, he realized there was a young man sleeping on the floor that he didn't recognize. He sighed, _'Suppose there'll be a story with that one to digest along with breakfast this morning…'_ He reached out to load the coffee machine…and his hand passed right through it. _'What in the world…?'_ He glanced back at his bed, panicked. There was no body in it (one never knew when one might leave such an important thing behind!). He held his hands up in front of his face. They were transparent. _'Athena….!'_ He tried to shout, but since his vocal chords were nonexistent, no sound actually came. He had to concentrate harder. 

He moved back into the living room and waved a hand through her head as she slept. Startled by the sudden coldness, she snapped awake, bolting upright. "Bakura, what is it – oh my god…" she trailed off as she stared at him, "What happened??"

_'I don't know,'_ he whimpered.

"Barak took the body and went to the museum last night," Diana said, now awake as well.

"WHAT?!" both Athena and Bakura cried together.

"Ugh…could you not shout so early in the morning…?" Nick groaned, propping himself up on his elbows.

_'My body's gone!'_ Bakura said, indignantly, _'Don't tell me not to shout about it!'_

A voice none of them recognized let out a small yelp and they all turned. The young man Bakura hadn't recognized was awake now as well, and backed up against the half-wall that divided the kitchen and living room, looking petrified. "Where am I?? Who are you??"

Diana slid out of her sleeping bag and crawled over her younger brother until she was nearer to the stranger. "Shh…" she put a finger to his lips to keep him from crying out again, "We're not going to hurt you. You must be Shem's host…funny, the way he spoke of you he made it sound like you were a child, but you're really quite grown-up, aren't you?"

Todd was completely lost by this statement, "What are you talking about?"

Diana sighed, "This really isn't my job to explain, and you probably won't believe me, but you have the spirit of an Ancient Egyptian living inside you. Now before you call me nuts – cuz I know you want to – answer this: have you ever had times when you'd black out and wake up with a small chunk of your life missing from your memory?"

The young man knew what she was talking about, but it still sounded crazy to him. Still, there had been times like that, "What day is today?" he asked curiously. 

"It's Sunday," she answered him, "What day do you remember last?"

"Friday," he admitted, his face going slightly red, "This may be an awkward time, but… who are you? And where am I?"

She blushed as well, "I'm sorry, of course. My name is Diana Icari. The two solid people behind me are my siblings, Athena and Nick. And the spirit boy, who I'm sure you can see, is Ryou Bakura. You are in his apartment. Your spirit brought you here so you would be safe. And…I don't think I caught you name…"

Translucent people. He was going crazy, "Erm, Todd," he answered, "Nice to meet you."

Diana smiled at him; the poor young man was so confused. She shifted her position so that she was sitting beside him, and put one hand over his affectionately. "Todd, I know this all seems ridiculous, but you need to accept it. You're a part of a new world now – where unexplainable things often happen." As she spoke, the Millennium Statue crawled up into her lap, and she stroked it absentmindedly. "It's really not a bad way to live once you get used to it – having a yami spirit, I mean," she continued, "Unless of course, you're Bakura."

Todd opened his mouth, but no words came out. In a brilliant flash of light from the pouch on his hip, Shem appeared, cool and collected, "The boy is confused. I'll talk to him later. Right now we must meet with the Pharaoh to decide a course of action."

"The Pharaoh can wait," Diana told him angrily, "You need to talk to him – now."

As Nick pulled himself up off the floor, he muttered, "You're just mad 'cuz he took your new boyfriend away."

Diana flushed crimson, "That is not true, Nick! Todd has a right to understand what's going on," she said, turning towards Shem again, "And you're the only one who can make it happen – so do it."

Shem glowered at her, then sat down and closed his eyes, going to find where in this mind Todd went when he took over.

Nick smiled, looking over at Bakura, "That's ok, that guy's to young for Diana anyway, right Bakura?"

Bakura looked at his feet. Athena was a couple years older than him as well. _'Leave me out of this,'_ he said weakly.

"You're such a jerk, Nick," Athena spat at him.

He shrugged, "Just lookin' out for my baby sisters."

Diana laughed coldly, "You're younger than us."

Bakura sighed, as Nick attempted to come up with some sort of response. Even in his own house, he couldn't get any attention. Now that he was just a spirit, it was like he really was invisible to the world. He sat down, trying to figure out what in the world he was going to do to get his body back.

He felt something warm go through his cheek and turned. Athena had kissed it and was smiling sadly at him. "We'll get it back, don't worry," she said, trying to comfort him, "And maybe we'll even leave Barak behind," she added jokingly.

_'It's a nice thought,'_ Bakura replied, _'but rather unlikely, I believe.'_

"But it made you smile," she said, "That's score one for me."

* * *

"They are a rare gift to be sure, Mistress. But dangerous."

"Indeed," Seline said, as all three Egyptian God Cards were fanned out in her right hand, "But dangerous gifts are my favorite kind."

"You witnessed their power first hand, Mistress. There are few who can wield it," Chalie warned, watching her eyes carefully, "Barak is the Prince of Egypt and Slifer barely listened to him."

"Yes…but Barak was clearly weak-minded," she reminded him, gesturing over at the fallen prince, who's body was in the process of healing, and who's eyes were milky and empty.

Chalie merely nodded and looked back at Basil, who was gazing moodily out of the window on the far wall, the Millennium Staff loosely held in his right hand, "And…there is a matter of how the Gods should be distributed to the Gauntlet."

Seline pulled Ra out and then handed the other two to Chalie, "You two can fight over them."

The cards seemed to weigh a great deal, though Chalie knew in the back of his mind they were no more than refined cardboard. Each God monster seemed to have a spirit about it. Nothing an Ernten couldn't handle. He placed Slifer the Sky Dragon in his pocket and walked over to basil, offering him Obelisk the Tormentor.

Basil took it without making eye contact with Chalie, and slipped it into his deck without a word.

Chalie turned away from his larger counterpart, "Mistress, the Pharaoh's patience must be growing thin by now. How much longer would you give him until he comes to confront us?"

"I don't plan on giving him a chance to confront us," Seline said, smiling coldly, "We've got more work to do before tonight. If all goes according to my plans, we'll never have to worry about him again."

Chalie raised an eyebrow, "That seems unlikely. What do you have in mind, Mistress?"

Seline smiled sweetly, "Come, boys. We have work to do."

* * *

"Sheesh, what a day!" Yugi sighed, lying down on his bead, staring out at the night sky, "Bakura's bodiless, Barak's gone (along with the Ring), Shem and Todd can't come to terms, and there's still no sign of Tristan or Tea." He turned to look at Yami, his large purple eyes imploring the ancient king almost desperately, "Can't something go our way for once?"

"It certainly doesn't seem that way…" Yami replied glumly, leaning against the boy's desk, too weary to even be frustrated any longer, "We don't have any choice anymore – we have to act quickly. A swift strike against Seline is our only option now. Anymore delays will risk Bakura's spirit crossing over to the next dimension."

The young man stood and put one hand on his spirit friend's shoulder, "You need to get some rest now, Yami. And we can't go alone, even when the time comes. Our friends have always been our biggest support. I'm sure they'd be glad to help out."

"Indeed," Yami smiled weakly, "Perhaps sleep is best for now." He settled down on the bed, hands behind his head, eyes closed, looking as though nothing could lift the weight of the world from his shoulders.

* * *

"I am ready upon your command, Mistress," Chalie stated plainly, his arms outstretched and pointed towards Seline.

"As am I," Basil nodded curtly, raising the Staff and directing it towards his mistress.

The tiny woman was standing in front of a hand-painted circle on the floor, through which an image of young Yugi Moto's bedroom was clearly visible. There was also painted symbols on her face and arms. She spread her hands over the floor. "Begin."

Chalie released the absorbed energy he had received from Barak the previous day, golden light striking the holder of the Millennium Earrings. This was not an attack, but rather a power boost. If he hadn't interfered last night and snapped her out of whatever form his mistress had been in, she might not need this extra energy. Opposite of him, Basil fired off a beam of energy from the Millennium Staff.

Seline closed her eyes, waving her hands over the image of the sleeping Pharaoh, glowing brightly and chanting softly in Roman. Her voice grew louder and louder until she stopped and all the light around her shot through her fingertips into the swirling vortex. The Pharaoh remained still, none the wiser to the dark magic that had just been cast. Seline brought her hands together and the circle closed, the glow vanished, and the room was left lighted only by the moonlight drifted through the skylights and windows. "Sleep, my liege," she said, bowing to the floor, "Sleep…and never wake up."

* * *

Monday morning. Despite the prospect of school and the looming threat of Seline and her minions, the dawning of a new day had considerably raised the spirits of Yugi Moto. It took less time than usual for him to get ready to head out, so the boy simply placed the Millennium Puzzle around his neck and walked out the door. It was a bit strange that there was no response, but Yugi simply shrugged, 'Probably with Dedi again.' 

Half-way to school, he crossed paths with Joey, who (of course) was headed in the same direction. The blonde teen cocked an eyebrow as his young friend walked right past him without noticing. "Hey, Yug!" he called, jogging to catch up, "You okay? I know yesterday was weird an' all, but you look pretty dazed."

"Actually, Joey, I think I'm okay. Yami wants to make a move soon, but I haven't gotten a chance to talk to him since last night."

Wheeler raised a single eyebrow, grinning, "Where is he?"

Moto turned a light shade of crimson, "I- I'm pretty sure he's still sleeping."

"Alone?"

"That I'm not sure of."

"Thought so."

* * *

The King of Ancient Egypt awoke, but did not open his eyes. It felt unnaturally warm, especially for December. He rolled over, and was surprised to bump into someone. Yami's eyes flew open, and he was surprised to see Dedi next to him. He stood up quickly, trying to take in all his new surroundings. 'Where am I?' 

The beautiful woman next to him stirred and touched his arm. "Why are you up so early?" she asked, "Chaldea won't be awake for a while – take advantage of it."

"Dedi?" he wondered aloud, "Where are we? What are you talking about?"

His beloved raised a questioning eyebrow, "We're in the palace…where we live, remember?? Boy, you must have really gone somewhere in your dreams last night." She nuzzled against him affectionately, "Wanna tell me about them?"

"I didn't have any dreams," he said, utterly confused. This wasn't right, it couldn't be. He hadn't lived in the palace of Egypt for five thousand years, "Dedi, tell me, where are we really? Is this the Shadow Realm?" She'd conjured some elaborate set-ups for him before during their nights together, but none as vivid as this. He was beginning to develop a headache; nothing was making sense!

"What's the Shadow Realm?" she asked, sliding away from him, looking concerned, "Honey, are you feeling alright?" She pressed a warm palm to his forehead.

The Pharaoh got up again and walked to the window. The large city of Giza sprawled out from the palace like giant mold, the Pyramids large even at a distance. He looked down, realizing that he was no longer wearing his normal attire, but rather a simple piece of white linen was wrapped strategically about his loins. The cool touch of the stone beneath him began to make his bare feet cold. He glanced back, seeing his Millennium Puzzle sit on the nightstand next to the large, king-sized bed, "I feel fine, but my mind is… clouded. This can't be right; I don't live here anymore. I haven't lived in a palace for five thousands years!"

"What are you talking about?" Dedi asked, climbing out of bed, dressed in a near-see-through white linen nightdress, "You've always lived here – ever since you were born."

Before Yami could respond, the large wooden door to their bedchamber creaked open and they both turned. A little girl about four years old, with shining ebony hair bounded into the room, a wide smile across her tan face. "Mama! Papa!" she cried happily, running to Yami and wrapping her arms around his bare legs, "I'm awake now!"

"Yes, we can see that, Princess," Dedi said, grinning.

"Papa! Can you pick me up?" the child asked, turning big purple eyes on him.

Yami blinked in surprise. He barely recognized the smiling child at his feet, having only seen her once before. Last summer in Egypt, Jetsu Maeda had tortured him with the memories locked within the Millennium Shield, showing the death of his wife, bodyguard, and the removal of his daughter from his palace. The leader of Egypt calmly picked the little girl up and held her, wondering if he had ever had this experience when this was his life, so long ago. He looked over at Dedi, now worried. Where and when in history he was wasn't logical, but a father's concern over rid his common sense, "Where is Basu Maeda?"

Dedi's expression softened, "Yami…you know Basu died of a snake bite years ago…I thought you got over that – you spent such a long time choosing his replacement." She stepped closer and stroked her daughter's hair tenderly.

At that moment, the door was pushed open further and a girl no older than sixteen stumbled in, "Chaldea, I thought I told you – oh!" She blushed brightly at the sight of the royals in their undergarments. "My apologies, your Majesty," she stammered, averting her eyes, "I turned away for only a moment and she disappeared."

Dedi laughed, "Don't worry about it, Ona," she told the girl, "We'll bring her back to you in a little while."

"Yes, my Queen," Ona nodded, and quickly left the room, shutting the door behind her.

"Chaldea…what have we told you about running away from Ona?" Dedi admonished her daughter, "You know she gets so worried."

"But I wanted to see you," the little girl replied innocently, hugging her father around the neck.

Yami smiled at his daughter's touch. His existence here was confusing, but as long as he was stuck here (as it appeared) he might as well make the best of the situation. Here amongst family, the problems of the present seemed less threatening…


	23. Chapter 23: Dreams Part 2 Life Fit For A...

Authors' Note: Sorry for the extra spacing...Word & FrontPage are being stupid this morning...Anyway, enjoy!

* * *

Chapter 23

"Dreams, part 2: Life fit for a king"

When Yugi got home that afternoon, he found Tsuki waiting for him up in the living room, reading. She put the book down when she heard him enter and motioned for him to sit beside her. "Hi Yugi." 

"Hey Tsuki. How are you?" he asked politely, laying his backpack down by the front door. 

"I'm okay," she said, "But Dedi is…upset at Yami. She asked me to come here and talk to you about it." 

The young Moto's eyes widened, "I haven't been able to talk to him all morning. I thought he was with Dedi." 

"Huh? Oh no," Tsuki shook her head, "He was supposed to visit her last night, but he never showed up. Dedi wanted him to read her some scripture from Shadi's book, to find out more about her past," she explained, wringing her hands nervously. 

"The last time I saw him, he was asleep on my bed. Then I looked back and Yami had disappeared," Yugi told her worriedly, starting the long trek up the stairs to his bedroom, "I thought he went into the Puzzle or something." 

"Can't you usually talk to him through the puzzle?" Tsuki asked, getting up from the couch and following after him. 

"Yeah, but there's nothing there," The boy opened the door to his room, looking around. 

"Look –" Tsuki said, pointing at the bed. Yami's spirit form was still there, apparently still sleeping, "Wow, I guess he was really tired…" 

Yugi Moto sighed and walked over to his friend, "Hey Yami- Ouch!" The young duelist pulled his hand back, a small burn mark beginning to form on several of his fingers. When he had tried to touch his sleeping friend, black energy had prevented him from making contact. 

"Are you okay??" Tsuki asked worriedly, taking his hand in hers, "What happened?" 

"I-I don't really know. I couldn't even get close to him," he looked at Tsuki (now aware that she was holding his hand), confused, "But I bet Dedi will know." 

Tsuki nodded and closed her eyes, becoming the Queen of Egypt quickly. "Stay back for a minute, Yugi," she said, pushing him gently behind her as she drew the Scale out of Tsuki's backpack. With a small cry, she released a blast of golden energy at her husband. The black energy that had burned Yugi was now visible in its full form, as a tinted, crackling dome over the Pharaoh, that repelled Dedi's blast only too quickly. She turned her back on it, shielding the teen with her body as the golden light hit her straight on. 

She stood up straight, her back slightly smoking, and glanced over at Yami. "That's dark magic, Yugi," she said, "And I'm not strong enough to penetrate it."

Yugi exhaled deeply, fear for his best friend and guardian slowly filling him, "What else could possibly go wrong?" he wondered aloud. Without Yami's strength and guidance, there wasn't much of a chance that they'd be able to defeat Seline and her minions, _'And I can't even sleep in my own bed anymore…' _

Sensing his concern, Dedi wrapped one arm around his shoulders. "Now, I said I'm not strong enough. But someone else might be…"

* * *

"Papa, will you take me out to the marketplace today?" Chaldea was seated on her parents' bed, watching as the two of them dressed, "I wanna see the peoples!"

Yami looked at Dedi, unsure of what to do. They (whoever these people around him really were) may have believed him to still be the mighty leader he once was, but the book of scripture Shadi had given him spoke very little of daily life, and this was completely uncharted territory.

"I think we could fit it into our schedule," the Queen said with a smile, fitting her golden tiara on her forehead as a finishing touch. She then turned and scooped the little girl into her arms, "Maybe we'll find something pretty for you to wear at tonight's feast!" 

Chaldea's eyes brightened, "Can I stay up to watch the Magi, Mama? Can I? Please?" 

"We'll see about that," Dedi told her, "Maybe if you're very good." 

"Papa," Chaldea turned towards her father, "Can I?" 

The Pharaoh shifted uncomfortably, "I believe your mother knows what's best for you," he told her evasively. 

"Oh, okay…" she said, pouting. Dedi set her on the floor and the child took hold of her mother's left and hand her father's right. Then she led them out of the room. 

The King of Egypt took a keen eye to each hallway. If he was stuck in this illusory realm, he had to learn his way around. They reached what had to be the ground floor and entered a large banquet hall with an elegant wooden table in the center. And sitting towards the far end, was a dark woman with soft brown hair…and Barak. 

The white-haired man stood as the three approached, but touched the woman's shoulder, stopping her attempt to rise as well, "My Pharaoh," he said, inclining his head slightly. 

Yami's eyes widened. What in the name of the gods was going on?? "Barak…" he said slowly, "My brother…" 

"As I always have been," the white-haired man said, amused, "Tola and I have been waiting for you before we broke fast." 

"Oh, you didn't have to do that," Dedi said sincerely, "Tola – you need your nourishment, especially now." 

The woman still seated at the table smiled, "I appreciate your concern, Dedi, but I'm fine. Really." She placed a hand on her swelling abdomen, "This baby's not coming for a while yet." 

Barak sat down once again, now joined at the table by the three of the ruling family. Yami was the last to sit, eyeing the thief warily. There was a reason that his older, half-brother was locked up inside the Millennium Ring. The ancient cat burglar, according to the scriptures, had attempted to force his way onto the throne by murdering Yami and his pregnant wife in their sleep. The ensuing Millennium battle turned out to be Barak's final mistake of his life and his banishment into his own Millennium Item. That would have been several years ago now; what had happened? Had anything happened at all? 

The woman, Tola (who was obviously Barak's wife), eyed Yami curiously, "Are you alright, my Pharaoh? You seem rather distracted this morning." 

"I don't think he's quite awake yet," Dedi said with a laugh. 

"It was a very odd night," the king said quietly, looking at the marvelous feast set before him. 

Dedi put one hand over her husband's tenderly. "Maybe a trip to the marketplace isn't such a bad idea. The fresh air will do you good. You've been cooped up in here for too many days now." 

"Waste of time, Dedi," Barak said shortly, "I spent my life in the marketplace. There's nothing to see but thieves and killers, with the poor mixed in between them." 

"Barak, please!" Dedi said, covering Chaldea's ears with her hands, "We don't need your type of advice at breakfast." 

"I never though the marketplace was that bad," Tola said thoughtfully, "It's where we met, after all," she added, giving him a shy smile. 

Barak, however, was obviously focused on the last comment. His voice was quiet, a deadly calm, "What do you mean by that, my Queen?" 

"I mean that my daughter doesn't need to hear about thieves and killers at her age," Dedi said, trying to hold her temper, "You're going to be a father yourself soon – you should learn how to behave around children." 

Chaldea had slid off of her seat, bored by the adult's conversation and was eating a piece of fruit over by a window overlooking the palace gardens. 

The Pharaoh's brother smiled slightly, "Your daughter likes me well enough. Isn't that right, Chaldea?" he called over to the little girl. 

Yami was glad the tension had passed. He had far too much on his mind to be worrying about the disagreements of illusions (they had to be!). 

The little princess turned and skipped back over to the table, putting her sticky hands on her uncle's pant leg, "Yes, Uncle Barak – I like you. I like you best when you're not angry." 

"I'm not angry," he told her, patting her on the head, "Your mother and I were merely voicing a difference in opinions." 

"Oh…well, that's okay then," she said, crawling up into his lap and planting a quick kiss on his cheek. 

The Pharaoh continued to watch curiously. This was a far different Barak from the one that existed in his time. Something had changed him in this fantasy. It must have been Tola; someone had finally shown Barak love and compassion, and it turned out to be for the best. It made Yami a little sad to think of the present, where his half-brother was now a captive of Seline, through his own selfish actions. 

Dedi shook her head, smiling, then glanced over at her husband, "You haven't touched your food," she noted, "Aren't you hungry?" 

Yes, somewhat. But if there was one thing he didn't feel like doing now, it was eating, "Not really," he told her, perhaps sounding a bit more detached than he had meant to. 

She reached up and felt his forehead again, "You must be coming down with something," she said worriedly, "These are all you favorites." 

"I feel fine, just not hungry." 

"By the way, baby brother," Barak said, raising an eyebrow and fingering his Millennium Item slowly, "Where is your precious Puzzle this morning? You seem to have forgotten it." 

Yami stood, thankful for an excuse to leave the table, "So it would seem," he turned and walked towards the door. 

"You do remember how to get back to our room, don't you?" Dedi teased. 

He froze, wondering if she suspected something. Quickly, Yami formulated a plan in his head. He'd just need a little help, "No, I don't think I do," he said, turning about face and smiling at his daughter, "Could you help daddy, Chaldea?" 

"Yes!" she chirped, hopping off Barak's lap and running to take her father's hand, waving back at the table, "Don't worry Mama, I'll take care of him." 

"I put my complete trust in you," the Queen said with a gracious nod. 

"Come on, Papa," Chaldea said, leading Yami back out the door, "I'll show you the way." 

He smiled at the little girl, "Thank you," The King of Egypt let her lead him out of the room, bending down just slightly so their hands could connect more easily. 

They walked in silence for a while, then the little girl glanced up at him and said, "I love you, Papa." 

Yami started abruptly, having been absorbed by the vastness of his dwelling, "Thank you," he responded politely, "I love you as well." For the little time he had known her now, these words were partially true. She was, in theory, his daughter. But this was still all just an illusion… wasn't it? 

She beamed at him as they reached the large doors of the royal bedchamber. "Here it is!" she said, pointing. 

The Pharaoh watched his excited daughter hop and skip into the room, full of life and energy, "Thank you…" he whispered quietly. 

* * * 

"Mistress," Basil said quietly, watching the largest security screen, "Which spell did you use? I have never seen that one before." Surrounded by a green, glowing light, the biggest monitor displayed a sleeping Pharaoh. The man's friends had come and gone. The black magic had prevented the holder of the Millennium Scale from interfering only a few minutes before, much to the delight of Ms. Chrysogonus. 

"That was a bit of magic I had kept for emergencies only," Seline said, sitting before the screen. She snapped her fingers and the image on the glowing screen changed, showing the Pharaoh placing the Millennium Puzzle around his neck while a small girl watched. "This is a variation of my ancestor's magic. When they performed that spell, the victim was locked within their nightmares. But I know that the Pharaoh would find a way to break out of that. So instead, I placed him in his most perfect dream: the life he never got to have while he was alive. Even if he realizes what's happened, he won't want to break free." 

"Brilliant, Mistress," Basil told her, quite amazed. 

Chalie looked up from his spell book he had been reading, "This will make the Gauntlet that much easier. Not that we need anymore help…" he trailed off, staring at the God card now sitting in front of him. 

"It never hurts to make extra precautions," Seline shrugged. 

"Indeed." 


	24. Chapter 24: Dreams Part 3 Fading

Author's Note: Okay, here's the next chapter. This is also the last chapter that will have screwed up spacing, as we began using a different document to type in which hasn't messed up on us yet.

* * *

Chapter 24

"Dreams, Part Three: Fading…"

"It is a powerful spell, my Queen. My apprentice and I will do research, I assure you. Do not fear for the Pharaoh. He is quite a capable man at handling dangerous situations." Shadi bowed low to Dedi, then he and Void disappeared. 

"Thank you," Dedi said to their vanishing forms, from her seat on the floor of Yugi's room, where what was left of their gang was gathered. Yugi was sitting at the chair in front of his desk, with Joey and Mai both on top of it. The Icari siblings were standing near the door, and poor Bakura's spirit was on the floor as well, leaning against Yugi's unusable bed. 

"Not much else we can do now, is there?" Mai said, gazing sadly over in the direction she and Joey were told Yami was. 

"Doesn't look that way," Joey agreed, nodding. He leaned over and put a hand on the shoulder of his best friend, who was looking rather glum, "Cheer up, Yug. I'm that Shadi guy'll figure out somethin'!" 

"I sure hope so, Joey," Yugi said with a weak smile. 

"If anyone can figure this out, it's Shadi," Dedi said. 

"Actually," Diana said, "Shem might be able to help us as well…" 

"Yeah," Athena scoffed, "If only he or Todd were speaking to us." 

"Shem and Todd must be having some…er, issues," Nick explained, "Todd hasn't moved from his meditative spot since yesterday." 

"It's too bad they can't just get along," Tsuki (in spirit form beside Bakura) said, shifting her position and tucking her legs underneath her. 

Next to her, Bakura had his eyes closed wearily. It was hard, being away from his body for so long. It seemed as if any energy he had had was being sapped away from him. The teen blinked blearily, looking down at himself, then did a sudden double take. Panicked, he brought his hands up closer to his face. As if being absorbed by the wind itself, his fingertips had begun to fade away! _"Oh dear…"_

Tsuki was the only one who noticed his distress, and grabbed one of his hands, holding it up, "Oh no, Dedi – look! Isn't there some way we can help him??" 

Dedi crawled over closer to them, taking Bakura's hand from Tsuki and examined it. "We could try an energy-transfer," she said, "If you think you could handle it." 

"I wanna help him," Tsuki said, nodding earnestly. 

"Okay…" Dedi made them all join hands and closed her eyes. There was a small flash of light followed by a glowing all around Bakura. "There. That should hold him for at least a day." 

Joey leaned over to Yugi and whispered, "Yug…what's goin' on over der?" Having no magical essence in his blood, Yugi's best friend could only see Dedi's physical being sitting in the center of the room. 

"Dedi's just trying to keep Bakura alive, Joey," Yugi explained calmly, watching as the white-haired boy's fingertips began to reappear. 

"You're telling me that Bakura's over there??" Mai said, pointing in Dedi's direction. 

"Yup. And Tsuki, too." 

"Wow…I suppose I should be used to this by now, huh?" she shrugged. 

Yugi nodded, looking over at the sleeping Pharaoh, whose fingertips were also beginning to disappear, "I wish we could do the same for Yami, but no one can touch him…" 

"We're running out of time," Athena spoke up, "Even if we don't have Yami with us, we still need to strike against the museum before it's too late." 

_"But, what can all of you do that Barak couldn't?"_ Bakura asked quietly. His yami spirit might have made some stupid decisions, but he had had good intentions. And the spirit of the Ring wasn't exactly a magical slouch. 

"We can work together," Dedi said, "One may not have been enough, but we may have a chance if we work as a team." 

The young Moto nodded in agreement, but was still watching his oldest friend, now fading away, _'But no team would be complete without Yami…'_

* * * 

The blazing heat of the desert sun was horrid at noontime, but Yami knew his daughter was at least enjoying the trip. He pulled at the collar of his cloak, trying to let any small amount of relieving air in. The ancient ruler knew he was sweating profusely, having just spent the last three months in ice-cold winter weather. That was sure to seem odd to these shadow images. 

Barak was walking behind him, wild white hair blowing in the slight breeze and arms folded crossly. To Yami's left was his wife and clinging to his right hand was his jumpy, excited daughter. 

The elder of the two ruling siblings raised an eyebrow, "Is something wrong, brother? You seem uncomfortable." 

"I still think you're coming down with something," Dedi insisted, "Look how much you're sweating." 

Yami wiped his brow with one sleeve, leaving drops of perspiration upon it, "I…I feel fine," wanting to get the subject away from himself, he looked down at his daughter, "Where would you like to go, Chaldea?" 

"Hmm…" she said, pondering over her choice, "Can we go see Aset's Temple? It's so pretty." 

"That's not far from here," Dedi said. 

Barak's voice cut in before Yami could reply, "I believe this is where we shall part ways. Tola wishes for me to run some errands for her, and the Temple Aset would not be pleased to see me, to say the least." He patted Chaldea on the head and pulled his hood up, getting lost in the crowd of busy citizens.

Yami shook his head, confused. The heat was beginning to make him feel light-headed and cloud his thoughts together, "Come, let us go to the temple!" he said, allowing the little girl to pull him along. Quietly, he leaned over to Dedi, "Why would the Temple Aset not accept Barak's presence?" the king of old asked softly. 

Dedi grinned, "Maybe because he robbed it and nearly murdered the priestess who presides over it. If it hadn't been for Priest Seti's attachment to her, the woman would have been lost for sure. Barak's just lucky he's reformed and no one can really prove it was him." 

The walk to the Temple Aset was a short one and soon the royal family was standing at its front steps, gazing up at the pillars and statues that framed the entrance. "Wow…" Chaldea breathed. 

Yami stared up at the magnificence of the building, then wiped his forehead again. Maybe he was getting a fever… "Priest Seti?" he asked, puzzled "Don't you mean Magi Seti?" 

"No…" Dedi shook her head, "He is skilled with magic, but he's only a healer as far as that goes. He's worked at the Temple Osiris for years – you know that." 

No, he didn't. That was yet another new twist in this strange world (how had he gotten here?), "Of course. The heat is just beginning to affect my memory a bit." 

"Maybe we should get out of the sun for a little while," she suggested. 

"Yes! Let's go in!" Chaldea said, taking the stairs at a run, tugging both parents along behind her. 

The inside of the building was almost as mystifying as the outside was (perhaps less dusty). Elegant tapestries draped the walls and beads and chimes hung from the arched ceiling. At the far wall of the room was a statue of Aset herself, painted with gold and many different blues. One either side of the statue was a doorway, leading deeper into the prayer chambers. As the royals looked around, soft footsteps echoing through the room caught their attention. 

The Priestess Aset was stepping through the right side door, her robes bright white, her long blonde hair tied back with blue ribbons. "My Pharaoh," she said, bowing as she approached them, "To what do I owe the honor?" 

"My daughter has taken a liking to this shrine," Yami explained. This must be the High Priestess Dedi told him about. 

"I'm honored," Aset said, kneeling down so she was near eyelevel with the child, "And I'm glad to see you again, Princess." 

Chaldea released her father's hand to hug the Priestess, "Me too!" 

Yami smiled at the sight of the two, "And how is Ma-, er, Priest Seti?" The Pharaoh asked, tripping over his words. Ever since meeting Ishizu Ishtar and reading Shadi's book of scripture, the fact that Seto Kaiba's ancestor was a dangerous magician that attempted to overthrow his kingdom had been burned into his brain. 

Aset blushed, "He is quite well. He would be flattered to know you concern yourself with his well-being." 

"Indeed I would," came an all-too-familiar voice from the front entrance and they all looked back. Seti was strolling through the entryway, not dressed nearly as extravagantly as he had been as a Grand Magi. "It is quite a pleasure to see you again, my liege." 

Yami stiffened, "The feeling is mutual, I assure you."

"I'm honored," Seti said, bowing and then extending his hand, "We can expect you to be at the demonstration tonight, correct?" 

"I certainly hope to be," Yami said, using his sleeve to wipe his forehead. The heat was less within the building, but he had not stopped perspiring. The changes back and forth in temperature were having an ill effect on his body. 

"Actually, Yami may be getting a slight fever," Dedi explained, linking her arm with her husband's, "I may have to force him to turn in early tonight." 

Seti nodded, "I understand. I hope you feel better, my Pharaoh." He bowed low once again, then walked off towards one of the prayer chambers, his gray, gold-lined robes just barely brushing against the floor. 

"I wish you better health as well," Aset said, rising to her feet, "Now if you'll all excuse me, I have duties to attend to." She bowed and exited the chamber through the same door Seti had used. 

"Duties…right…" Dedi said with a knowing smile, "Those two had better hurry up and get married before they get caught." 

Yami shook his head, but regretted it an instant later as it began throbbing. He needed to lie down and get some rest soon. Here, however, was not the place for that. The Pharaoh straightened up and looked down at his daughter, "Shall we be going?" 

"Okay," she said, her expression softening, "I'm sorry, Papa. I didn't know you weren't feeling good…" 

"That's quite alright," he told her, picking her up in his arms, "We can still stay out as long as you like." 

"I think we can go home now," she said tenderly, hugging him, "I want you to feel better."

Yami beamed at his daughter's kindness, "Very well." 

* * * 

Books were scattered all around the room, most still up on their dusty, little used shelves. Shadi's own personal library, or at least, that's what Void liked to call it. Long before he had joined him, his master had been carefully translating and recording any information pertaining to magical disturbances or Ancient Egypt he could. Now, hundreds of books sat on their wooden ledges, dark magical secrets and historical records concealed by covers alone. It was a long process, going through the book to find the cause of the Pharaoh's alarming condition. 

Void looked down at the book in his lap once again. It was a history of the Roman invasion of Egypt, though summarized greatly, but there was a sentence that caught his attention. "Master," he said, "Listen to this: 'The Grecian army raided many of the Temples during the invasions, stealing away dark Egyptian magic secrets. When the Roman army seized control some years later, they would translate and mutate the magic into a well-hidden power of their own.' I believe we may be searching in the wrong places for the cause of the Pharaoh's dilemma. The museum woman is a native Roman." 

Shadi set down his book, now interested in what his apprentice was showing him, "That is true, I suppose. Still, any curses she knows will have been taken from those in Egypt. We will continue our search, but keep an eye out for any spell you see that appears to be similar to those the Pharaoh suffers from." The Egyptian man snapped his book shut and got up from his desk to remove another from the shelves. 

"Yes, Master," Void nodded. 

Shadi looked through his books, a small bead of sweat making its way down the back of his neck, _'Remain strong, my Pharaoh. We are trying…'_


	25. Chapter 25: Dreams Part 4 Breaking Point

Authors' Note: Due to a probably unnecessary snow-day, we bring you this update! Yay!

* * *

Chapter 25

"Dreams Part 4:Breaking Point"

"You just lie down for a while," Dedi said, "We'll come and get you when it's time for the feast to start, and hopefully you'll be feeling good enough to join us tonight."

Chaldea gave her father a final hug, "Get better, okay Papa?" she said.

Yami returned the hug and gave her a small push, urging her to follow her mother. He proceeded to place his puzzle down on the small table beside his bed and lie down, much more tired than he realized he was.

The sounds of the open air outside his window filled him with nostalgia, and he closed his eyes, wondering mildly if, when he opened them again, he would not have returned to the real world He opened them and the ceiling of the bedchamber greeted them. No, it was not going to be that simple to get home.

But wasn't this home…? He rolled over on his side, and drifted to sleep pondering this most-haunting question.

* * *

"The "Betrayal of the Mind", or "nightmare prison": this spell was first used by Basu Maeda during the reign of Yami the First, banishing any criminals or servants that were unsatisfactory to be trapped within their dreams forever. Once their souls were trapped, it was only a matter of time before their bodies wasted away of starvation." Shadi flipped the page to his book, Void still listening intently. The older man sighed and marked the page, then snapped the book shut, "This is the closest I have been able to locate to the Pharaoh's current condition."

"Well, we know his host body won't starve," Void said, "But his spirit may still begin to fade. Is there anything in that passage on how it is performed or reversed?"

Shadi looked up at his apprentice grimly from his chair, "There is no counter-curse. One the enchantment is upon a being, only the person who cast the spell can choose to release it."

Void hung his head. This search was becoming more and more hopeless the further they progressed.

Shadi stood and wiped his dusty white robes with his hands hastily, "I wonder…" he said to no one in particular as he crossed to the shelves once again. He removed a thick, dust-encrusted volume from its place and cracked it open. He flipped through its fragile-looking pages quickly and then his face brightened. "Here Void, listen to this: Betrayal of the Mind, though deadly, could only be kept upon a victim as long as the magical energies of the one who performs the curse remains higher or equal to that of the victim. Should the prey's magic be stronger, that person could actually remove themselves from the prison by force of will alone."

"Then there is still hope," Void said, pale eyes shining, "If Seline could be weakened, Yami would be able to free himself!"

The Egyptian man began to walk around the room, gathering up his most useful reading materials, "Come Void, I believe it is time to return to the Queen. I believe she may need to hear some bit of good news."

* * *

"Darling…wake up," Dedi's voice broke through Yami's light slumber.

The Pharaoh's eyes fluttered open. He didn't feel any better than before he had begun his REM cycle. Now, rather, he actually felt worse. Something was definitely wrong here, "Yes?" he asked drowsily.

"I was coming to see if you were feeling up to coming with us to the feast, but you look terrible," she leaned down and kissed him gently, "I'll tell Chaldea you're still resting. And I'll send the physician in to see you, alright?"

Yami shook his head slowly, "I doubt my seeing a healer would do much good."

"Perhaps I'll bring Seti back with me when I return," she suggested, then seeing his expression darken, "I don't understand what's wrong – you've never disliked him before."

Too many years of not trusting Kaiba must have bled through to the surface, "It is nothing, my love. I will do what you see fit for my health," but it would not help…

Dedi frowned, "If it is nothing," she said, "why do I sense such a change in you? You're acting like you'll never recover from this. I've never seen you give up on life like this in all our years of marriage…what is really happening to you, Yami?? Please tell me…" Her face was contorted in confusion and pain, and she stroked his face tenderly, "Don't shut me out…if something's not right, please let me fix it…"

Yami sat up, wondering if it was best to tell an illusion the truth. She would not understand, "Do you trust me? Would you believe me if I told you?"

"Of course I would," she said, putting a hand on his arm, her voice choked with tears, "I love you…I just want to know what's wrong…"

Recounting the tales of his new life took quite some time (perhaps longer than he had planned), but much had happened between him and Yugi that was of importance. It was the conclusion that was the most difficult, "And now…I believe I'm fading away now in my world, somehow trapped here, away from Yugi. Without his body or connection to the Millennium Puzzle, I cannot sustain my existence. Thus, as I die, I become weaker and sicklier here." 

"By the gods…" Dedi shook her head, "This all seems so strange and yet…in my heart I know it must be true…I know you would never lie to me…" She kissed him again and then said, "We have to get you out of this place…I don't want to give you up, but I refuse to sit by and watch you die like this…it's just not fair…"

"But I don't know how," Yami told her dejectedly, trying to word his situation properly, "I don't even know what spell Seline could have used to do this. The last thing I remember is lying down to rest. When I awoke, I was here."

"We'll figure out something," she said, embracing him, "I promise…"

The door to their room opened slowly and they turned. Chaldea was peeking around the door, with Shem's familiar figure right behind her. "Mama?" the child said, entering the room, "What going on? Papa, are you going to be okay?"

"I caught her sneaking away from Ona again," Shem explained, "She was very insistent that she see you before we left for the feast. Is everything alright in here?"

"Yes, we're fine," Yami said, masking his worry with a false smile.

The little girl climbed up onto the bed, squeezing between her parents and hugging her father tightly, "I want you to get better, Papa."

"Thank you, Chaldea," The King told her, returning the hug, "Now, why don't you and Shem go join the feast downstairs. You're a growing girl and you need to keep up your strength."

"Can I come back up and see you again before I go to bed?" she asked.

The two leaders of Egypt exchanged a quick glance, then Dedi patted her daughter on the head, "Of course you can. Just be sure to be extra good tonight, okay? And don't run away from Ona again."

"Okay," Chaldea nodded. She got to her feet, planted a kiss on Yami's cheek and then climbed down off the bed, "Come on, Shem! I'll race you!"

The young bodyguard bowed swiftly to the King and Queen, and then jogged after his young charge.

Yami watched the two leave, a sad thought crossing his mind, _'Isn't this where I belong? Isn't my presence needed here as well? Once I return, I'll never get to see that happy little child again…the one I barely even knew I had…'_

* * *

"So you're saying, all we have to do is boost Yami's magical energy and he'll be able to break free?" Dedi asked.

Shadi shook his head sadly, "It will not work, my Queen. We have tried making contact with him in this state, if you recall." The Egyptian man squatted down, looking through a large duffle bag he had brought with him. Yugi (the only other person in the room besides Void) leaned over from his spot near the bed, trying to catch a glimpse of what Shadi was looking for. 

The man pulled a large, dusty, gray book from his sack and began flipping through pages, "However," he began, dragging the word out slightly so he could find the correct page, "We have successfully located the origins of the Romans' modified version of the curse, and have uncovered a flaw. Rather than forcefully decreasing the magical energy of the victim, it boosts the power of the one performing the curse – but this is only temporary. If the curser was weaker than the victim originally, then when the curser returns to his or her original state, the victim shall have no trouble breaking through the barrier."

"But Yami doesn't know that," Yugi said, "How are we supposed to tell him what going on?"

"The Pharaoh is a resourceful, determined man," Void told the young man with certainty, "He will find his way back to us."

"I still wish there was something else we could do…" Dedi said sadly, "He's fading faster than before…"

Shadi nodded, "We must have faith in the pharaoh. Hopefully, he will return before his magical energies drop too low. Otherwise…" there was no need to finish that sentence…

* * *

It was quite unusual to need sleep in a Realm of dreams, but Pharaoh Yami the II couldn't seem to keep his eyes open. His strength was failing him rapidly. Whatever curse had trapped him within this world was doing its job effectively. Once more, the man succumbed to his body's insistent pleas for rest…

_He was floating…flying really…through infinite space – but he felt no wind, no pressure upon his body at all. Was he even really moving? He chanced to look down and his eyes widened. He could see Yugi's room, the small space crowded with people. All of his friends, gathered around his host's bed. What were they looking at…?_

_ The space below him enlarged, drawing itself nearer to him or he to it. With an inaudible gasp, his gaze came to rest upon his own form, lying on Yugi's bed, encased in translucent black energy. _

_ "We're running out of time," Athena was saying, "Even if we don't have Yami with us, we still need to strike against the museum before it's too late." _

_ "But, what can all of you do that Barak couldn't?" Bakura's spirit, weak and feeble-looking, asked._

_ "We can work together," Dedi said, though she did not sound confident, "One may not have been enough, but we may have a chance if we work as a team." _

_ "But no team would be complete without Yami…" Yugi said quietly._

_ Silence followed, none of the others able to think of a way to comfort the young host of the Millennium Puzzle. On the bed, the Pharaoh's spirit had his eyes closed, the eyelids darkened by whatever curse had befallen him. High in the air, Yami watched in horror as his "body" slowly began to disappear. Already, his hands and feet had vanished, threatening to consume his entire body into nothingness._

_ "Yugi!" he cried, wondering just how far away from his friends he really was._

_ There was no response – they couldn't hear him. Suddenly he heard Dedi's voice again, though the image below him began to fade, "Yami…where are you…we all need you here…"_

_ "Dedi! I am here!" he shouted, though he realized that he could not be heard. The scene of his friends and family began to grow smaller and smaller, as if he were unable to keep up with their speed, "NOOOOOOOOOOO!"_

With a start, the Pharaoh awoke from his short slumber. Sweat covered his forehead and the back of his neck. He shivered, despite the warmth of his room. His body was failing quickly; he had to act soon. Yami stood, surprised at the difficulty of the task, and retrieved his Millennium Puzzle from his nightstand. He had to find a way back to his body, and the only way he'd be able to bring himself to do such a task was away from the illusory Dedi and Chaldea in this Realm. That's what Seline (it must have been her that cursed him) had been counting on: that he wouldn't be able to bring himself to leave because of them. 

The magic of his familiar Item began to glow, a dim, weak golden light beginning to surround his body. He had to get back to Yugi, his friends were counting on him! If the Realm had magical origins, then enough magical energy should be able to disrupt the spell creating it around him.

"Brother? What are you doing?" came a gravelly voice from behind him. Barak stood in the doorway, his Millennium Ring pointing violently at the active Puzzle.

"I'm leaving," Yami said, "I have to. You will let Dedi know, won't you? She'll understand."

The one-time thief nodded, though not quite sure what his half-sibling was talking about. He opened his mouth to speak, then closed it again. Finding the right words to say was difficult, "Where will you go?"

"Back to the future," Yami said, "To where I belong." He stopped his magical concentration for a moment and approached the illusion of his older half-brother, placing his hands on Barak's shoulders. "I will never forget the time we've spent together – I only wish that our relationship in the future was as harmonious."

The former temple raider cracked a reluctant smile, "What poison has befallen your mind, brother? Your speech makes little sense."

"I don't expect you to comprehend what I must do…" Yami said, "Even I don't understand it fully…I just wish you to know that I value the friendship we have."

Barak shook his head again, "Very well. Do you require assistance in your plight, brother?" The Pharaoh did not seem to be himself. He was sweating hard, and his breathing was heavier than normal, despite the small amount of magic he had begun to gather together.

Yami thought to refuse the offer, but then smiled. Perhaps he could use Seline's own curse against her. "Yes…thank you, brother," he said, "I'm having trouble gathering energy this evening…perhaps you could aid me in that?"

Barak let out a short laugh, his Millennium Ring glowing, "I always was the better conjurer, brother," he grinned and patted his sibling's shoulder, "I shall help you, if it is truly important to you."

"It is…" Yami said, his expression one of true gratitude, "I thank you."

The older magician nodded, taking several steps back from his brother, "Time to rid you of this illness, brother!" he cried, spreading his fingers around the Millennium ring and surrounding himself with a golden aura. In a blinding flash of light, the gathered spell energy began to rise off of the wild, white-haired man. It arched upwards, then fell towards the Earth, surrounding the mightiest of the Pharaohs.

Yami shut his eyes, feeling his strength slowly returning. The Millennium Puzzle around his neck floated a few inches away from his chest, his own pale yellow adding to the bright golden aura of his half-brother. "Yes…" he said, "It's working…excellent, Barak – thank you!"

The man nodded, his eyes closed in concentration. It had been a long while since his magical energies had been required. He did not wish to see his brother suffer, no matter what reservations he still couldn't quite bury between them. If his kin was in need of his assistance, he would receive it.

Yami let his hands hover around the Puzzle, reaching out with his mind, trying to find the connection between himself and his host. It was weak…barely there at all, but he could feel it. He _needed _to feel it; needed to reestablish the connection. He poured all of his concentration and energy into it, seeing his young host's face clearly in his mind. It started out weak, nearly invisible. And then as if drawing nearer through a fog, it became clearer. "It's working…" he said aloud.

Barak could feel his pores begin to release their salty fluid, a sure sign of hard work and strain, "Let us hope it works soon."

Yami opened his eyes again, looking down at himself. His own body had begun fading. "Barak!" he cried as the illusory world around him began to blur, "I thank you! Please pass on my love to my wife and daughter…I will never forget this time with them…"

It was too late. Broken and fading, the dream world dissolved as the curse lifted. For an instant, Yami remained alone in the blackness of limbo, his golden light still roaring about, but causing no shadows. A free-fall began just as quickly as the darkness had enveloped him. His normal, spirit body was rushing towards him (or rather, he was falling towards it). His true home awaited!

* * *

Yugi looked up from the homework he had been trying in vain to concentrate on as a surge of magical energy rushed over him. He turned to see the black dome around Yami crackling and fading. With a rush of wind, it disintegrated completely and the Spirit of the Millennium Puzzle began to become whole again, his arms and legs reappearing quickly. 

"Yami!!" the young teen cried, scrambling out of his chair, nearly knocking it on the floor.

The Pharaoh's eyes fluttered opened, and the older man sat up slowly, rubbing his head. He blinked in surprise to see his host was waiting for him. The digital clock read 1:22 AM, after all, "Yugi!" he responded in surprise, spreading his arms to accept the young man's hug.

Due to the extra magical energies rushing through him, Yami's form was solid enough without him having to concentrate, and Yugi as able to fling his arms around the spirit's middle without even sinking in. "I knew you'd come back! I knew it!" the boy cried, his voice cracking from the excitement.

Yami grinned. He still felt fatigued from his ordeal, but it was night after all. They could deal with Seline tomorrow, "Of course I came back! You didn't think a curse would hold me down forever, did you?"

"No…" Yugi said, brushing tears away from his eyes, "I never gave up hoping…but we were all really worried."

"I am sorry for that," Yami told him, rubbing the back of the boy's head with one hand, "I had very little control over my situation."

"I know, I know," Yugi nodded, "I'm just glad you're back…I felt so…empty without you."

The ancient Pharaoh smiled, "It's good to be home."


	26. Chapter 26: A Gamer's Dream

Authors' Note: Sorry for the delay in updates...we've been without inspiration for a really...really long time...If you must blame something besides that, blame the stupid, unnecessary "Noah" Saga that killed the inspiration.

* * *

The Gathering - Chapter 26

"A Gamer's Dream"

"The transformation spells have been successfully completed. They can be access on a whim. The pharaoh's friends shouldn't stand a chance-" Chalie stopped short, looking up from his report, "Are you alright, Mistress?"

Seline was on the tile floor, on her hands and knees on the floor, leaning above the glowing circle that displayed the Pharaoh's return to the mortal world. Her breathing was heavy and the glowing green Egyptian Eye was flickering on her forehead beside a pulsating vein. Angrily, she swiped at the image and it vanished in a wisp of smoke. 

Then she stood, fully composed again. She turned towards Chalie, the green eye burning brightly, lighting his face as well as hers. "Excellent…but it will no longer be enough. It seems the Pharaoh is more resourceful than anticipated."

The man tensed, feeling adrenaline begin to fuel his natural abilities as an Erten. That dangerous symbol, the one that had nearly led to the death of the Prince of Egypt, had reappeared, "Mistress, are you certain you are alright?" The change was becoming more frequent now. It wasn't as though she was a different person, but something seemed to influence every decision his Mistress made when that Green Eye glared upon her forehead.

"Never better," she said, reaching up to stroke his cheek, "You?"

He did not react to her touch, but was tempted to grab her hand. Unfortunately, Chalie knew his own limitations. The powers of an Erten cannot be taken lightly, after all. She seemed too in control now. Trying to remove the Eye from her forehead could be them end of him, or both of them, "Have our plans changed?" he asked, "The Pharaoh will make our objective much more difficult to obtain."

"Our goal remains the same," she said calmly, "The steps in getting there, however need altering. You're absolutely right – dealing with the Pharaoh was supposed to be completed by now. Come," she said, striding past him towards the door, "We have work to do."

A worried expression plastered itself on Chalie's face and he shook his head in concern, "Very well, Mistress."

* * *

"Seto?"

The eldest Kaiba sibling looked up from his desk, where his computer displayed several different pie graphs. Tax season was always complex around the world's largest company. Things had calmed down considerably since the Jetsu-debacle and Vitani's recovery from the incident was all but complete. "Yes?"

"What're you workin' on?" Mokuba asked, leaning on the armrest of his big brother's high-backed chair.

"Income taxes," Seto sighed, shutting the laptop, "Boring adult things, Mokuba."

"Oh…well, the mail's here," the younger boy said, reaching behind him and holding up a large cardboard box with a 'THIS SIDE UP' label.

Kaiba nodded, searching the box over for a return address but finding none, "This made it by security?" he asked skeptically.

"Actually, a bunch of suits brought it by hand," Mokuba explained, "Vitani cleared them through and said to bring it up to you."

"Ahh…" he said, then his eyes widened, "Ahhhhh…"

"You're so weird, Seto…" Mokuba said, eyebrows raised, "So what's in it?"

"Our future, Mokuba, our future," Seto explained evasively, hands twitching in anticipation.

The younger Kaiba brother opened his mouth to ask what that meant, but a different voice cut him off before he'd even begun, "Does that 'our' include me?" Vitani stepped into the room, smiling.

"Yes," the president of Kaiba Corp. said quietly, a bit embarrassed to be discussing such things in front of his younger brother.

"So what is it??" Mokuba asked eagerly, his curiosity outweighing his desire to tease his brother.

Seto thought for a moment, then gathered the box up into his arms (resisting the urge to hug it close to him), "I'll show you in the duel-test arena." He walked out of the room, motioning for the two to follow him.

* * *

"They really did it, didn't they?" Vitani asked as Kaiba slit the tape holding the box shut. The three of them were standing in the steel-plated arena used to test Kaiba Corp.'s newest software.

"We'll find out, won't we?" Kaiba asked, tearing away several dozen packing peanuts from his newest creation. Beneath the remaining Styrofoam bits was a decent sized machine wrapped carefully in bubble tape, and a second, small box located next to it. Seto cautiously removed the latest version of the Duel Disk from its packaging.The newest model of portable dueling looked a bit like its predecessor (why change what works?), but more refined. It was smaller than the DD2, and several color changes had been made. Where there had been light gray as the border frames, there was now sleek dark silver. The slots in which monster cards are placed, rather than blue with red arrows, was black lined with gold.A small antenna was just barely visible, tucked inside a thin tunnel along the side. "It's beautiful, isn't it…?" he asked, mesmerized.

Vitani shook her head, smiling and kneeling down beside him, "It's wonderful…" she said, just a tiniest bit less than enthusiastic.

"What's this thing?" Mokuba asked, picking up the smaller box and shaking it near his ear.

Kaiba nearly spazzed, "Mokuba! That's part of the Duel Disk 3! Don't shake it!" He removed the box from his brother's smaller fingers and opened it, shattering the tape holding it closed.

"Geez…sorry," the boy shrugged, watching Kaiba remove a headphones-and-mouthpiece from the box and fit it on his head, "What do you need that for?"

"Voice recognition. My duel monsters, for whatever amount of time they stay on the dueling field, are going to listen to me and only me." It was a brilliant work of science, managing to transform the energy and air molecules all around them into a specified DNA code written into the DD3 for each duel monster card. Radio waves from the machine would be sent directly to the duel monsters brains, instructing them as the duelist commanded. All the graphic and sound technology had been perfected for magic and trap cards, which roughly functioned the same as its predecessor, the Duel Disk 2. Kaiba slipped the multi-million dollar machine on his right arm, the clamps adjusting smoothly and flawlessly to his arm size, "Fire up the computer, Vitani. Mokuba, go with her."

"Right," Vitani rose, taking Mokuba by the hand. She reached into the pocket of her suit jacket and tossed a pair of thick leather gloves to Kaiba, "Don't forget these." Then she turned and led the younger boy to the elevator leading up to the control room. 

Kaiba grunted and snapped the gloves on his hands tightly, a bit annoyed to be reminded of the last time he attempted to touch a live Blue-Eyes White Dragon. A different sort of life had been given to his favorite monster then... "Let's go!"

Vitani's voice echoed over the sound system, "Whose deck do you want the Duel Computer to use?"

"Like it matters," Kaiba scoffed.

"Ok…I guess I'll pick one and surprise you." Vitani flipped a few switches and typed a bit on the main keyboard, and the Duel Computer robot was released from its storage area behind the far wall.

Seto Kaiba slid his dueling deck into the appropriate slot, causing the machine to start up and begin counting his life points. He adjusted the mouthpiece to the headset, "Seto Kaiba voice test," the man said quickly, allowing the DD3 to record his voice, "Begin duel!"

The Duel Computer's virtual deck appeared, the randomizer "shuffling" its cards and laying out six to begin (Gravekeeper's Spear Soldier, Ready for intercepting, Cat of Ill Omen, Royal Tribute, Terraforming, Cursed Seal of the Forbidden Spell). The mechanical voice was synthesized to that of an adult female, calm and smooth, "Activate magic card: Terraforming," its monotone voice said aloud, a green-backed card with a picture of a dome of life on a dead planet appearing in front of Kaiba, "Field magic card selected from deck to hand," (Necrovalley), "Set one monster in defense mode (Cat of Ill Omen (500/300)). Activate field card Necrovalley. End turn." As it slid the card into its slot, the steel-plated room around them morphed, being enveloped in brown stone that crawled up the walls. The ceiling vanished and a red-orange sky appeared in its stead.

The president of KaibaCorp rolled his eyes. He knew exactly whose deck Vitani had chosen. Seto pulled the six out of his duel disk with surprising ease despite his clumsy gloves (Spell-Shield Type-8, Spear Dragon, Flute of Summoning Dragon, Luster Dragon, Negate Attack, Giant Germ) "I set two cards face-down (Negate Attack/Spell Shield Type-8) and set one monster in defense mode (Giant Germ (1000/100))," The two brown-backed cards appeared on the field. A small trickle of sweat made its way down the back of his neck. Despite his confidence in the new machinery, defense mode was safer. No need to test the DD3 right away…

"Seto?" came his baby brother's voice over the intercom system, "What's wrong? Why'd you play defense?"

"Zip it, Mokuba," Kaiba told his sibling shortly, "It's my duel, remember?"

Up in the control tower, Mokuba clapped a hand over his mouth, and Vitani spoke into her microphone, "Take it easy, Seto. He didn't mean anything by it. Let's just keep moving."

The elder of the siblings snorted, "Fine. I end my turn."

The Duel Computer selected another holographic card (Gravekeeper's Assailant), "Flip summon Cat of Ill Omen!" A small, chubby black cat appeared on the field (holographic, as the computer still had DD2 technology) purring softly, "Cat of Ill Omen special effect: select one trap when Necrovalley is on field, and add it to hand. Card selected," A new card appeared on the digital duelist's hand slots (Curse of Royal), "Set two cards face-down (Curse of Royal/Ready for intercepting). Summon Gravekeeper's Spear Soldier (2000/1500) in attack mode." Up from the stone rose the tall, black-robed man, holding his long spear at the ready.

"Spear Soldier attempts an attack on your face-down monster," The warrior rushed forward, its large, pointy spear aimed at Kaiba's down monster.

The man moved to press the button on his Duel Disk, knowing full well the effect of the enemy monster. But before he could touch the button, he stopped. His Giant Germ (a live one!) was going to be on the field if he let the attack through. Seto folded his arms, waiting eagerly for the ensuing destruction.

The spear struck through his face down card, revealing for an instant a very solid Giant Germ. It made no noise, but the holographic spear struck right through the beast, causing it to cave in on itself and splatter all about the room, covering Seto with sticky, putrid smelling purple goo. He glowered for a second, but as he transported the card to the graveyard, all of the purple substance that was once his monster vanished, removing any trace of its tiny existence. Kaiba: 2100/ Duel Computer: 4000.

Seto pulled two of the same card out of his deck, "Now I summon two more Giant Germs to the field (2x 1000/100) in attack mode!" Two more of the same large, goopy creatures appeared, small grooves and bumps coming and going on their surface as they moved to sustain their flight, "And you lose 500 points for the destruction of my monster!" Kaiba: 2100/ Duel Computer: 3500.

The computer opponent sent one more of its magic cards from the field to the graveyard, "Now activating: Royal Tribute. Discard all monsters from hand to graveyard"

Kaiba pressed down one of the buttons on his Duel Disk 3, "Not so fast! I activate Spell Shield Type-8!" A large, peculiar looking silver machine hovered over the field for a moment, absorbing the computer's magic card within its depths, "By sending one magic card from my hand to the graveyard (Flute of Summoning Dragon), I can stop your pathetic spell in its tracks!"

"End turn."

The young man drew his card (Mystical Space Typhoon), "I activate a magic card of my own: Mystical Space Typhoon!" A large, cyclone-like magic card appeared behind his monsters, sending a thin bolt of electricity towards the surrounding valley they were now dueling in, "Which will destroy your Necrovalley!"

"Activate trap card: Curse of Royal," Several spooky, wailing ghosts flew out of the newly-played trap card, swallowing the electric shock whole, "When opponent's magic or trap targets magic or traps on this side of the field, Curse of Royal will negate the card and send it to the graveyard."

Kaiba growled, "Fine, now I tribute one of my Giant Germs…" he pulled one card up off of the dueling field, causing one of the vile creatures to disperse again, "to summon my Luster Dragon (2400/1400) in attack mode!" With a rush of wind and a tornado of emerald shards, the giant creature rose up through the floor. It flapped its wings excitedly, sending sparkling green shards everywhere. Then it let out, not a roar, but a sound that was more like that of a whale's song. It turned its head and blinked ruby red eyes at its master, the echoing, cooing sound slowly fading away.

Seto's eyes widened in awe, "Yes…" he removed the gloves casually, switching what was left of his dueling hand from one hand to the other in order to get the coverings off. As the dragon lowered its head towards him, he stretched out his free hand, stroking it slowly, as if savoring the taste of something rare and exquisite. The scales on its nose with small and smooth, rippling under his fingers. The dragon cooed again, locking gazes with its master.

"Amazing…" came Vitani's amplified whisper.

"That's so cool, Seto!" Mokuba's voice rang out across the dueling area. From inside the viewing box, the young boy was hopping up and down with excitement. 

The president of KaibaCorp grinned and stepped away from the dragon, "Go, Luster Dragon, destroy that pathetic Spear Soldier!" 

The other of he computer's two face-down cards flipped up as the large, green dragon creature took flight towards is holographic enemy, "Activate trap card: Ready for Intercepting. Switch one spellcaster-type into defense mode," As if on cue, the Spear Soldier knelt down and positioned its spear in front of itself on an angle. A blast of beautiful green (and extremely hot) fire burst forth from Luster Dragon's mouth and blew away the illusory enemy.

Seto Kaiba smirked and pointed at the frightened-looking black cat on the other side of the dueling field, "Giant Germ, attack now!" The large floating ball of disease let burst a stream of horrid purple toxin from within itself, burning the Cat of Ill Omen to bits (and leaving a black stain beneath where it once prowled). Kaiba: 2100/ Duel Computer: 3000.

"Drawing card," the computer began (Sword of Dark Destruction), "Set one card face-down (Rite of Spirit). Summon Gravekeeper's Assailant (2000/2000) in attack mode." The tall, Egyptian man rose up out of the floor, only his eyes and hands visable through the mass of dark cloak. One hand clutched a twisted dagger. 

"I still think that computer has bugs in it," Mokuba muttered quietly to Vitani, folding his arms across his chest, "Just because it can beat Giant Germ doesn't mean Seto's Luster Dragon won't destroy it next turn. That'll leave its life points wide open!"

"Don't be so fast to predict the future, Mokuba," Vitani told him, her gaze not leaving the duel arena, "My sister's deck is not so easily defeated."

"Activate Equip card: Sword of Dark Destruction." The twisted dagger in the Assailant's hand disintegrated into dust, and was replaced with a long, curved sword. The weapon crackled with red energy, fueled by darkness. "Gravekeeper's Assailant will now gain 400 attack points. Assailant will attempt attack on Giant Germ." The computer's monotone voice displayed none of the spirit usually held within Athena's deck, but the tone did not stop the cloaked monster from rushing forward, intent on hacking the last of the disease creatures apart.

"I activate my trap card: Negate Attack!" Kaiba roared, his swirling defense shield revealing itself in time to stop the Gravekeeper monster from making contact with his beast.

"End turn."

"I draw!" Kaiba glanced down at his magic card and snorted (Blue-Eyes White Dragon) _'Too easy...' _ "I tribute my two monsters to summon forth my ultimate monster: The Blue Eyes White Dragon!" Both Luster Dragon and Giant Germ both became pure white, glowing brighter and brighter as they melded together, forming a new being. As the glow dulled, Kaiba's ultimate and most loyal creature was standing before him.

Kaiba wished to touch his mighty being, know for certain of its reality, but 'once bitten, twice shy', "Blue Eyes White Dragon," Seto called up to it, "Unleash your fury upon that monster now!"

With a mighty blast of electric white energy that shattered the glass separating Kaiba from his two closest friends (from sheer power alone!), the mightiest of dragons incinerated the holographic monster and burned a hole into the wall just to the left of the duel computer. Seto's creature let loose a mighty roar, celebrating its victory. Kaiba: 2100 – Duel Computer: 2400.

The Computer selected another card (United We Stand), "End turn."

"Kaiba…" Vitani's nervous voice echoed through the room, "Don't attack directly – you could destroy the computer…not to mention the rest of the room behind it."

Seto Kaiba ignored her. It was probably decent advice, but if the Computer was shut off, it would record the battle as a draw. Besides, he was a billionaire. It wasn't like replacing it would be difficult. The real motive, however… "Blue Eyes, attack my opponent directly NOW!"

The dragon roared and a second blast of energy erupted from its mouth. Vitani ducked down, wrapping her arms around Mokuba as she did so, shielding him from the force with her body. The Computer warped against the force of impact, and then exploded violently, leaving the energy to soar straight through where it had been and crash headlong into the wall. The smell of burned metal and smoke filled the room, and the final shockwave rushed past all three humans present.

The eldest Kaiba didn't even flinch, but threw back his head and began to laugh hysterically. The dragon of light let out one final cry, then disappeared as the shiny new Duel Disk 3 Prototype powered down.

Mokuba stood up, coughing against the dust, "I think Seto might be getting a little carried away…"

"I think you're right…" Vitani said, brushing her bangs out of her face and peering down out the shattered windows towards her unofficial beau. Kaiba simply laughed on. It was the gamer's dream come true.


End file.
